Mystify
by Saph-fire
Summary: After the completion of the Prophecy of Seven, Percy and Annabeth think that they can finally be together without having to worry about the next apocalypse. But the world becomes an even more dangerous place for demigods when some clear-sighted mortals begin stirring up trouble by tampering with the Mist in order to achieve their ultimate goal: the eradication of all demigods.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians.**

**This was originally published as a one-shot prequel to Mystify called "Don't be A Hero" but I deleted it and added it to Mystify instead. Please enjoy. :)**

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**Mystify**

**Chapter 1**

"Annabeth, this way!" Percy yelled, carrying Piper in his arms. Piper was on the verge of passing out. She had lost so much blood killing a giant with the help of her mother. But the act took too much out of her. The daughter of love was about to collapse on the cold ground when Percy scooped her off her feet and took off running.

Annabeth carried a limp Leo on her shoulder. Using his pyrokinesis to its full extent with the assistance of Hephaestus, Leo burned a giant to a crisp but at the cost of his energy. Leo was able to crawl his way towards Annabeth to which she lifted him on her shoulders with what was left of the superhuman strength Athena granted her in order to slay a giant.

Annabeth ran directly behind Percy when a gigantic sword was thrown their way. A lightning bolt shot out of Jason's hands and deflected the sword to stab into another giant.

"Take them back to the Argo! I'll cover you guys!" Jason shouted and charged up another lightning bolt. Annabeth and Percy didn't even take the time to acknowledge him. They were too preoccupied with getting their injured friends to safety. From the corner of his eye, Percy saw Frank morph into a Tyrannosaurus Rex and Hazel send glittering jewels through the air straight through a giant's head.

Percy and Annabeth made it back to the Argo and handed their friends to Coach Hedge who proceeded to perform first aid on them. Annabeth held her right arm and felt hot liquid seeping onto her hand. Although Athena had endowed her with superhuman strength and durability, she still wasn't invulnerable. She could feel her head start to get light. But Percy was about to run back into the fray when Annabeth spoke up.

"Percy! Wait!" She yelled. He stopped in his tracks to look back at her. Annabeth felt that her body would betray her and she would pass out. But she had to speak to Percy. Her eyes lifted to meet his. "I love you." She simply said.

Percy had been breathing heavily with a large hole of raw flesh at the side of his face. But Annabeth still thought of him as the most beautiful person she ever laid eyes on. He jogged back to her and smiled in delight at her words.

"And I love you, too." Percy grinned.

"Please, be serious and listen to me." This was no time for jokes. Annabeth needed to make Percy understand just how in love with him she was if… if the unthinkable were to happen to him. But Percy's smile only widened.

"I am serious, babe." His voice still sounded like he was joking but looking into his brilliant sea green eyes, Annabeth saw that he was sincere.

So she continued, trying to occupy his time as little as possible. "You have absolutely no idea how much I truly love you. No matter what happens out there, know that I will always love you more than anything."

Percy wrapped his dirt-smudged and bloody arms around her. "I know." He stared into Annabeth's stormy eyes. "I've never felt so loved until I met you. And as long as I have your love, I can accomplish anything." A quick but desperate kiss was placed on Annabeth's split lips. Tears began to form in her eyes and she looked away to let them fall. "Annabeth, look at me." Percy lifted her chin. "I need you to know how much I love you." He took a fast deep breath and wished he had told Annabeth this sooner, not when the whole world was resting on their shoulders. "I love you more than I love the sea. I love you more than I love my powers. I love you more than I love being a demigod."

Annabeth chuckled through her sobs. "But you hate being a demigod because of all the trouble it causes."

Percy held her tighter. "At first, yeah. But now I love that I'm a demigod. If I were never one, I would have never met you."

"Percy." Their lips met in another kiss. She knew Percy would do whatever it takes to save the world, just like he always had. But Annabeth hated to think what "whatever it takes" really meant. As selfish as it was, she would rather face the end of the world if it meant being with him. But Percy would never allow that to happen. He would sooner sacrifice himself so Annabeth could live in a safe world.

"Percy, I'm begging you. Don't be a hero. Come back to me safe and alive." It was impossible to make him change his mind. Percy can't go against his nature. And being a hero was in his nature.

Her lover stroked her face softly. "I can't promise anything only that I will do anything to keep you safe. And if I fall in battle, so be it. I know you will take over the fight."

"Percy, please. To me, the world isn't worth protecting if you're not in it." She sobbed. "So please, stay alive, Seaweed Brain."

Percy graced her with a cocky grin. "I didn't survive Tartarus just to die here." Then he rested his forehead against hers. "Just have faith in me, Wise Girl." Another kiss touched Annabeth's lips and Percy disappeared back into the battlefield.

As he leapt up to stab a giant in the chest with Riptide that Poseidon had temporarily transformed into a trident, all he could think about was Annabeth.

'I will survive to take my rightful place in your arms, Annabeth. I swear on the River Styx I will!'

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**Next chapter, the actual story begins!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians or The Heroes of Olympus.**

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**Mystify**

**Chapter 2**

Annabeth's eyes slowly opened. Her vision showed her a white light at first but soon her sight returned to show the faces of Will Solace, the councilor and best healer of Cabin 7, and her brother Malcolm, whom she had left in charge of Cabin 6 while she was away.

"Oh, good. You're awake." Will smiled at her. Malcolm looked so relieved that he might pass out.

"Where's-" She sat so quickly her head started to spin but Malcolm put his arms around her to steady her. "Where's Percy?" Annabeth scanned the infirmary to see seven other cots, one for each of the other sleeping heroes of the prophecy and Nico. Nico was barely awake but when he met Annabeth's eyes he gave her a weak smile and waved his right arm that was covered in a caste.

Percy was in the bed closest to her. His forehead was wrapped in gaze with a thick pad on the right side and blood was oozing through the fabric. Annabeth calmed down at seeing her boyfriend alive, beaten up, but alive. Malcolm set her back down on the bed but this time put more pillows down to elevate her head.

The other heroes had bandages and were bruised here and there but luckily no one looked seriously injured. Couch Hedge was reading an issue of Sports Illustrated between Leo and Piper's beds. Another dark haired boy with red-stained lips was sitting next to Frank's cot sipping a cup of cherry Kool-Aide but looking quite sullen. Reyna was seated with her hands folded on her lap between Jason and Hazel's bed, facing Jason. Her eyes were glossy and her eyebrows knitted. She looked as though she was about to cry. Reyna reached her hand out to brush some hair away from Jason's forehead.

"Piper?" Jason said in his sleep. He stirred a little but didn't wake up. Reyna hurriedly snatched her hand back and stood up from her seat. She was dusting off her toga when she saw Annabeth was awake. Reyna gave Annabeth a grateful smile although Annabeth didn't know what for. The female praetor walked to stand next to Will and Malcolm.

"Annabeth."

"Hey, Reyna." Annabeth tried to sound cheerful. "Are you alright?" She asked, referring to the tears that were threatening to run down Reyna's cheeks but Reyna stubbornly refused to let them fall.

"Of course. It's the eight of you who should be asked if you're all right." Reyna gestured to the seven other sleeping demigods.

"What happened? Why are we all in the infirmary?"

"You all arrived right when we were about to break through the barrier and declare war on Camp Half-Blood. You all, especially Percy, quelled the fighting. But as you can see from Percy's bleeding head," Reyna said, "one person wasn't so accepting of our alliance."

"Who attacked Percy?" Annabeth's voice was laced with hate but she didn't know why she even asked because she had a pretty good idea of who it was.

"It was a skinny blond guy holding a torn up teddy bear." Malcolm answered.

"Octavian." Reyna said through gritted teeth.

Annabeth rolled her eyes and looked towards Percy. He was flat on his back with his head tilted in her direction. Their beds were close enough that Annabeth reached her hand out and lightly grasped Percy's. After their time in Tartarus, just being close to Percy was enough to make her feel at peace.

"Where is he now?"

"Under watch and on a tight leash." Reyna smiled.

"Good."

"And right after we finally made peace, the eight of you collapsed from exhaustion." Malcolm explained.

"Yeah, we were all so anxious coming back from Greece, we couldn't sleep the whole way back." Annabeth smiled at her sleeping comrades. "Thank the gods we are all alive though."

"Get some rest, Annabeth, Coach Hedge will be watching over you guys while you sleep." Will said and walked out of the infirmary followed by Reyna and Malcolm.

"Come along, Dakota." The boy that was drinking Kool-Aide stood up and followed Reyna out the door, but not before flashing a quick smile in Annabeth's direction. His teeth were light red from his Kool-Aide. Annabeth returned a smile and waved goodbye.

The daughter of wisdom rubbed her thumb over the top of Percy's hand as she looked up at the ceiling. She couldn't believe it was all over. It seemed to have all happened so quickly. The whole time Annabeth was in Tartarus with Percy her mind was going a million miles a minute. Her sense of time was skewed. They could have been in Tartarus for an hour, a day, a week, or a month. While they were down there, she didn't know. The others had told her and Percy that they were in there for almost three weeks when they emerged out of the abyss.

Annabeth slowly let go of Percy's hand and felt her face. She had a large gash going down the left side of her neck from when that monster clawed her. But she felt that it was quickly healing from the combination of ambrosia and the Apollo Cabin's healing. She rotated her ankle that had been broken and it seemed to have fully healed from her time in Tartarus and on the way back to the US.

Feeling tired again, Annabeth closed her eyes and tried to drift off to sleep but found it difficult. She hasn't slept since her and Percy's last night in Tartarus and even then it only felt like a series of blinks rather than sleep. The bed lowered when another person's weight climbed on the bed and wrapped their arm over Annabeth's waist. The familiar presence pressed next to her made sleep come faster than she thought it would and her mind went into a relaxing blank.

* * *

Percy opened his eyes slightly when he felt someone lightly shake his shoulder. He looked up to see Coach Hedge and Chiron's disapproving faces. Percy groaned. It seemed like only five minutes had past after he lay down next to Annabeth and slept more comfortably than he could in his own cot.

"What?" Percy asked in an irritated tone with his eyes still half closed.

"Percy, I think its best that you return to your own bed." Chiron stated calmly while Coach Hedge shinned his metal baseball bat.

But Percy didn't care. He settled his head on Annabeth's shoulder and closed his eyes again.

"I thought you learned your lesson last time, Jackson." Coach Hedge said while poking Percy's head with his baseball bat. Percy swatted the bat away effortlessly and returned his arm to rest over Annabeth's waist. Coach Hedge was having none of this. Two campers from different cabins, no matter how in love with each other they were, were not allowed to sleep in the same bed ever. Camp Half-Blood was a PG rated camp. At least that is what Coach Hedge thought it should be. "Get up, boy!" He yelled in Percy's ear causing him to flinch.

Annabeth's eyes opened and she blushed when she saw that Chiron and Coach Hedge were looking at her and Percy. The other demigods emerged from slumber as well, some more than others. Frank was rubbing his eyes while Leo tossed a few times before sitting up. They all stared at the scene that was taking place next to Annabeth's bed. Percy was being stubborn, still not moving until Annabeth sat up. Percy groaned again and sat up too, though his arm was still resting on Annabeth.

"What do you want?" He asked with an even more irritated tone.

"Get your ass into your own bed, mister ocean breeze." Coach Hedge responded. Percy sat still but Annabeth got up from the bed.

"What's the problem?" She asked, seriously confused at the situation.

"I grounded you, young lady! And that means that you and your little squid boyfriend aren't supposed to be in the same bed."

Annabeth opened her mouth to respond when Percy finally got up from the bed and stood next to Annabeth.

"Look, Coach. I respect you, really, I do." Percy said firmly. "But I have been missing for over half a year, robbing me of my time with my girlfriend. I have been through hell and back, literally, with the constant fear that I might lose Annabeth forever. So if you think I am going to stay away from her just because you grounded us, then you've got another thing coming." Percy wrapped his arms around his girlfriend and planted quick and frantic kisses along her neck, jaw, and cheek.

Coach Hedge's face turned so red he looked like a very pissed off tomato. He was about to charge Percy when Chiron put his arm on the satyr's shoulder.

"Stand down." Chiron simply said but it was enough to calm Coach Hedge. Chiron could clearly see that this was not a negotiable situation for Percy and with a demigod as determined as Percy, Chiron decided to let the matter go. "Since you are all up, how about coming outside?" Chiron motioned for the children to leave the infirmary. They slipped on their shoes and filed out the door, with Hazel, Piper and Leo attempting to comb their hair with their fingers to try to look a little presentable despite their torn clothes that they still haven't changed out of. Coach Hedge gave Percy a murderous look as he passed but Percy just smiled and put his arm around Annabeth's shoulder. She promptly wrapped her arm around his waist.

When the sunlight of early evening hit their eyes, the eight demigods squinted and their ears were assaulted with the sound of cheers. With their eyes open wide, they saw a mixed crowd of both camps applauding and cheering for them. Everyone but Leo felt flustered at the attention and praise. Leo held his arms up triumphantly. Frank and Piper, who where on either side of Leo, put his arms down but he raised them again and waved to the crowd, causing them to cheer louder.

"All hail the mighty heroes of Olympus! All hail the mighty heroes of Olympus!" The crowds chanted.

"Oh, shut up!" Mr. D said and everyone quickly hushed. Mr. D walked towards the front of the crowd. "Well, looks like the heroes are finally awake from their royal slumber."

"Dionysus, it's an honor to meet your Greek form." Jason bowed to him politely. Since the gods had cut themselves off from both camps, this was the first time Jason had seen Dionysus. But Mr. D scoffed.

"Whatever, whatever your name is."

"Jason, sir."

"Don't care." Jason backed up to take his place next to the other seven heroes. "Well, even though Hermes is the messenger of the gods, for some reason I am the bearer of news today." He pointed at the eight demigods who recently exited the infirmary. "You eight are to go to Olympus right away. As for everyone else," Mr. D turned to the crowd and sighed. "I am ordered by Zeus to throw a party for you all."

Mr. D snapped his fingers and music, decorations, food and drinks appeared. The crowd of both Greek and Roman camps smiled, danced, and laughed together. Percy couldn't be happier. His fatigue wore off and he was about to drag Annabeth to dance but Mr. D held his hand up. "You eight. Olympus. Now." Percy was about to protest then Mr. D snapped his fingers again and suddenly they were on Olympus.

* * *

The seven plus Nico were in the throne room of the gods who were all seated in their designated thrones. Apollo and Artemis greeted Percy with fond smiles. Aphrodite looked like she was trying her best not to squeal when she saw Annabeth and Percy with their arms around each other.

"Welcome, heroes!" Percy's dad, Poseidon greeted them. The demigods all bowed respectfully.

"You have done well, heroes." Athena said calmly and smiled at her daughter. Annabeth was beaming.

"Especially your leaders." Zeus said. "Jason Grace, Percy Jackson, step forward."

Percy looked towards Annabeth and she nodded. Percy and Jason walked to stand in front of Zeus's throne. Zeus smiled down at Jason and shifted to his Roman form, Jupiter, but only for a second. His gaze turned to Percy, making him turn back into Zeus and he frowned.

"Seeing that the two of you are the greatest heroes of your time, immortality and godhood will be rewarded to you if you so choose." Jason perked up with wide eyes. "Percy Jackson, this will be the second time you are offered this gift."

"Thank you, Lord Zeus." Percy looked back towards Annabeth much like he did the first time. Although this time Annabeth looked as calm and content as can be. "But I cannot accept. I belong in the mortal world with Annabeth." Annabeth walked forward, got on the tips of her toes and kissed Percy's chin. She was aiming for his lips, but Percy was too tall for her. Percy bent down a little so Annabeth could reach his lips and cradled her head in his hands. He could hear a faint gagging sound and was sure it was coming from Athena.

"And you, my son?" Zeus addressed Jason. Jason thought for a while and looked to his side at Percy and Annabeth hugging, then behind him at Piper. She looked scared with her arms wrapped around herself. He turned back to face his father and gulped.

"I have to think about it." Jason said. Piper's eyes got wide but she calmed herself and looked away.

The godly parents of the heroes approached them all individually after Jason's answer.

Aphrodite cupped Piper's face in her hands and planted kisses all over her face that left a trail of lipstick on her. Piper was extremely embarrassed but realized that her friends were too busy to notice her. Despite Piper's disappointment and anxiety at Jason's answer, she felt happy when she was with her mother and even took a few opportunities to kiss Aphrodite's cheek.

Hephaestus patted Leo on the head like he was a child but Leo couldn't be happier. The extremely ADHD demigod could feel the pride radiate off his father in waves. Leo never knew it could feel this good to make someone proud and to have pride and confidence in his own self.

Ares transformed into Mars for Frank. He roughly patted the boys back happily, almost making Frank fall forwards a few times. Mars muttered things like "Way to kick giant-ass" and "Just like your old man." Frank blushed immensely and rubbed the back of his neck. He didn't really know how to accept such praise from one of the most important gods from the Roman side. But he settled on nervously saying thank you several times.

Hades was constantly switching between his Greek form and Roman form for Nico and Hazel. He nodded in approval at them. Although the gesture was small, the two were so happy and excited.

Zeus once again changed into Jupiter and rested his hand on Jason's shoulder. Jason looked up at his father with the utmost respect. But the offer of godhood was still weighing in his mind.

Athena had dragged Annabeth away from Percy. The wisdom goddess expressed her overwhelming pride and happiness she had in her daughter. She had also asked for Annabeth's forgiveness for how she treated her in the subway. Of course Annabeth forgave her mother in an instant. Athena placed a kiss on Annabeth's forehead.

Percy watched as Athena stroked her daughter's face gently when his own father approached him.

"Once again, you have exceeded all expectations." Poseidon said and ruffled Percy's hair. "But I have to ask: are you sure about your decision, Percy? No hero in history has ever been offered immortality twice and has declined to it. Do you truly feel so strongly about Athena's daughter?"

Percy looked at his father's smiling face and then back at Annabeth who was now holding hands with Athena. Percy thought Annabeth's smile was the most beautiful thing to exist even when he was on Olympus, surrounded by the most beautiful creations. "I do and I've never been surer of anything in my life."

Annabeth and Percy returned to each other's side after a while and spent the rest of long hours in Olympus together. Apollo had made music play according to what the listener wanted to hear. Annabeth and Percy both heard slow music. They occasionally slow danced together which looked a little strange because Hazel, Leo and Frank were all dancing right next to them like they were at a high school dance. But mostly, Annabeth and Percy just appreciated each other's presence.

* * *

Piper tried to not seem upset that Jason was considering becoming a god. She was constantly smiling at her friends and making small talk with the many lower gods on Olympus who joined them in celebrating. But her act obviously wasn't working as Jason approached her.

"What are you so mad about?" He asked taking a seat next to her on a beautiful stone bench next to a large bush of roses. Piper turned away from him. She mentally debated on what to tell him. Maybe she was being a little selfish for not wanting him to take this opportunity. But her feelings were important, too, weren't they?

"To be honest, I'm mad because I know there is a part of you that wants to be immortal. And if that happens, we won't be able to be together." Piper didn't want to mention that if Jason becomes a god and they stayed together, Piper would eventually die just like every other mortal. And that meant that Jason would continue to live and roam the Earth whenever he pleased. There was a chance that he would meet someone else and forget all about Piper.

"I know that, but it's kind of unfair for you to be mad at me. You're disregarding my feelings and ambitions. I did say that I will think about it, deciding on all the pros and the cons."

Piper felt tears in her eyes. Jason obviously didn't feel as strongly about her as Percy did for Annabeth. Percy did not even have to think about it. He just knew that immortality wasn't for him. From the stories Piper heard about the war with Kronos, the first time Percy was offered immortality, he didn't ask for time to think about it like Jason had. Percy couldn't even bare the thought of leaving Annabeth alone in the mortal world. As happy as Piper was for her friends that were so in love, she couldn't help feeling the sting of jealousy.

"So if you become a god, is being unable to be with me a pro or a con?" Piper couldn't help herself. The words left her mouth before she even had time to think. And she knew that this wasn't anyway to convince Jason to stay with her.

"Piper, don't be like that." Jason was being calm and collected, just like he always was. Piper loved Jason. But sometimes she wished that he would let go and show how he was really feeling.

"Look at Annabeth and Percy!" Piper put her arm out towards the two lovers. Jason turned his head to look at them. They were seated on the large rim of a huge fountain, slowly but passionately kissing. "Percy was so quick to say no because he wants to be with Annabeth more than anything. Why can't we be like them?"

"Because we aren't them. They have known each other for such a long time and have faced death together more times than they can count, especially after their time in Tartarus. We can never be like them."

Piper couldn't believe what Jason was saying. They could never share and achieve the kind of love that Percy and Annabeth have?

"Are you saying that for you to love me, we have to go through many life and death situations?"

"No!" Jason said rather strictly. But he realized how mean he sounded and sighed, returning to his calm demeanor. "Piper, I do love you. I'm just trying to show you that we aren't like Annabeth and Percy at all. We can't be like them."

"And if you accept immortality, we definitely won't be like them."

"Piper," Jason said softly.

"What about us, Jason?" She turned to face Jason, with tears welled up in her multicolored eyes. "We can never be together if you become a god."

Jason couldn't understand what the problem was. He had only said he would think about the offer. How much did he have to emphasize that? Piper was acting as if he already said yes and it was frustrating him.

"You're acting like there is nothing else to live for besides love. Even if I don't accept, there are other things I want to do with my life. Not everything is about love. We don't live in an idealistic world, Piper, no matter how much we would like to." His words came out a little more harshly than he intended.

Piper was silent for a while and a tear escaped her eye but she quickly wiped it away.

"Maybe you're right." Another tear fell and again she wiped it away. "And maybe it's the curse of every silly daughter of Aphrodite to want to believe in the power of love and in an ideal world."

Jason's eyes widened. He truly loved Piper and didn't want her to feel sad. But he was presented with such an amazing opportunity for strength and power. Jason reached for Piper's hand but she snatched it away.

"Jason, Piper, let's go home!" Leo called to them.

Piper composed herself and left the bench to join the others who were gathered to return to Camp Half-Blood. Jason was the last to meet up with the group. Jason blinked once and they were already back at camp. The other members of Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter were still partying like the night was still young even though it was two in the morning. But the crowd was beginning to dwindle down. Many Roman campers had retired to large army tents that were set up earlier. They had a long journey ahead of them, as they would be returning to Camp Jupiter tomorrow afternoon.

Jason turned to see Piper quickly walk to her cabin and close the door. He decided to follow her example and headed to his own cabin all alone.

* * *

Percy couldn't help but laugh at the Stoll brothers who were dancing with lampshades on their heads. Although he had only been back at Camp Half-Blood for a few hours and spend most of those hours forging peace between the camps and sleeping, he already felt right at home. Percy knew this was his home and this is where he belonged.

Annabeth pulled Percy away from the crowd of partying campers towards his cabin. He felt a wave of relief wash over him as he was finally back home. But with Tyson already passed out in the pegasi stables from eating too much peanut butter sandwiches (he was like a Snorlax), Cabin 3 would be lonely tonight.

They reached the porch of the cabin and stopped at the door. Annabeth smiled up at him.

"Uh, thanks for walking me to my cabin, but don't I usually walk you?" Percy said.

"The last time you did that, I woke up to discover that you never made it back to your cabin." Her gray eyes turned even stormier and she looked away. She was clearly still affect by their time apart. "I want to make sure that you're safe."

"I know, but everything is going to be okay now, Annabeth. You have nothing to worry about." He cupped her face in his hands, forcing her to look up at him.

"But I have to take precautions. You don't understand, Percy. I can't go lose you again. I can't go through that again." Annabeth's voice was breaking.

"I do understand, Annabeth. When I went missing and woke up from a long sleep, all I could remember was you and all I knew was how much I missed you and wanted to see you but I didn't know where you were." Percy kissed her nose, which was a little cold from the night air.

"I don't really want to say good night." Annabeth blushed. "I don't want to be apart from you, even just for the night." She began to chuckle a little. "Dammit, I'm turning into one of those clingy girlfriends that everyone hates."

"No, you're not. There's nothing wrong with wanting to be close to someone especially since right when we found each other again, we were forced into a war." He stroked Annabeth's hair. "If saying good night is too hard, you can always, um, crash with me for the night. Ya know, if you want. Totally your choice. I'm not forcing you."

Annabeth looked at him shocked. "But what about your dad?"

"He knows how I feel about you, Annabeth. And he knows that nothing makes me happier than you." Percy opened his door and stepped inside, waiting for her.

Annabeth hesitated for a while. The last thing she wanted to do was offend the father of her boyfriend. But she trusted Percy's words. If Percy wanted to be with Annabeth, his father would only want him to be happy. After all, Percy is Poseidon's favorite son.

Annabeth followed Percy into his cabin and he locked the door. She remembered walking in here and discovering that Percy was nowhere to be found. The memory still haunted her. But now she had her Seaweed Brain back. Nothing was stopping them from being together now.

Percy changed his jeans into plaid pajama bottoms and handed Annabeth one of his big shirts that was still here from last winter break. He turned around to give her some privacy, pretending to fluff pillows. Annabeth eventually touched his arm, signaling that it was okay to look now. When he saw her, Percy blushed madly. The shirt reached her mid-thighs and the hole for the head was pretty low because it was so big. He got a good look at Annabeth's cleavage without really trying to. Percy knew he shouldn't be so nervous at seeing her like this. He had seen her in less, much less. But still, Annabeth could make something as simple as an oversized shirt look cute and sexy.

Percy climbed into his usual bunk and threw his ripped and blood-stained shirt onto the floor. "Choose any bed you want."

Annabeth looked around the room for a second and then climbed into Percy's bed.

"Problem, Seaweed Brain?" She asked as she cuddled into his warm embrace.

"No. Definitely no problem at all. " Percy smiled and cuddled into her as well. The last time they took the time to do something like this was in the stables on the Argo II but that was nothing compared to cuddling on his own turf, in his own cabin, in his own home.

"Percy?"

"Hm?"

"Thank you for protecting me in Tartarus." Annabeth wrapped her arm around Percy.

"Are you kidding? You're the one who was protecting me and with a broken ankle too." They both giggled. It was funny now, but at the time, they were both scared out of their minds. There were times when they truly thought all hope was lost and they would die so they expressed their love to each other as deeply as they could often. "I would be dead right now if I were with anyone else down there but you."

"I love you, Percy." Annabeth buried her head into his chest.

"I love you, too." And he meant every word. Even though they were in the dark, they could still see each other. It reminded Percy of the never-ending darkness of Tartarus. "Annabeth, I know that I shouldn't bring this up, but I can't stop thinking about it. You know, in Tartarus, what we did there, I know it wasn't ideal."

Annabeth laughed. "Percy, 'not ideal' doesn't even begin to describe our first time."

"I know, but I still enjoyed it." It may seem to be stupid for two people to be joined for the first time in the deepest pits of a never ending abyss, but Percy and Annabeth took one look at each other when they were in Tartarus and couldn't stand to die without experiencing being as close to each other as possible.

"Me too." Annabeth blushed and placed a kiss on Percy's neck.

Percy fingered a circular charm on Annabeth's camp necklace. It was a gift from Aphrodite that Annabeth found under her pillow aboard the Argo II. Percy found out about it in Tartarus.

"So, you're sure this thing Aphrodite gave you works?" He gulped. As much as he loved Annabeth and was sure he was going to spend the rest of his life with her, he wasn't ready for some of the consequences of sex just yet.

"It's been almost a month and I haven't missed my cycle."

"Oh, thank the gods." Percy let out a breath that he didn't know he was holding. He wanted to build a future with Annabeth. But he was saving that for much later in life.

"Speaking of our first time," Annabeth said in a whisper. Her eyes became foggy and she bit her bottom lip. "I wouldn't mind if you'd want to…" She trailed off but Percy knew exactly what she was implying.

Percy smirked deviously at her and their lips met. As cute as Annabeth looked in his shirt, Percy much preferred her with it off. Annabeth ran her hand over Percy's bare chest and soon the only noise in the cabin were moans and a creaking bed.

* * *

Back on the West Coast in San Francisco, while the warriors of Camp Jupiter were resting for the night, a group of cloaked figures looked down at the empty valley where Camp Jupiter was hidden from the world.

The individual at the head of the pack walked closer to the barrier masking the camp and gently touched it. There was a light shimmer and the camp became visible to them for a split second before it disappeared again.

"These demigods need to learn that they have no place in this world anymore. And we will be the ones to show them."

* * *

******I know there isn't that much plot in the first chapter but that's because it's only kind of a set up. Just wanted to establish how secure and comfortable Percy and Annabeth feel being back at home.**

**Thank you for reading and please review.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians.**

* * *

**Mystify**

**Chapter 3**

Percy's eyes twitched slightly then opened slowly. The first thing he saw when he woke up was Annabeth's sleeping face. She was curled up next to him as close as possible with her golden hair spread across the pillow. Percy couldn't help but smile. Waking up to see her face first was possibly one of the best things he has ever experienced. Percy closed his eyes again and tried to snuggle even closer to her, even though they were already as close as can be. The movement next to her made Annabeth open her eyes. She blinked a couple times and adjusted her head to look at Percy. Percy sensed her eyes on him, making him open his own eyes.

"Morning." Percy said with a chuckle then kissed Annabeth's cheek.

Annabeth blushed when Percy cuddled with her again, their bare skin rubbing against one another. She bit her bottom lip, remembering what they had done last night. Their first time was in Tartarus and was the furthest thing from being romantic but Annabeth knew she would cherish the memory for the rest of her life. And as much as she loved their first time, last night was so much more enjoyable. Their first time had been excessively frantic because there was the feeling that they may die as soon as the next second. Last night had been wonderful. Percy was so much more gentle and paced himself so he could go on longer and was doing his best to make every moment pleasurable for Annabeth.

"Good morning, Seaweed Brain." Annabeth said when Percy leaned over to kiss her lips this time. "Did you sleep well?"

Percy smiled, putting an arm behind his head. "Best sleep I've ever had in my life." He had a tinge of pink in his cheeks. "You really tired me out, Wise Girl."

Annabeth blushed more before pulling the covers higher up their bodies and she shut her eyes to just enjoy being with Percy. But her eyes shot open when she realized where exactly she was: in Percy's cabin when she should be in her own cabin. Annabeth sat up, holding the blanket over her chest. Percy raised an eyebrow at her. Why was she covering herself? It wasn't like there was anything he hadn't already seen.

"Something wrong?" He questioned.

"No." Annabeth got up, bringing the covers with her and pulling them off of Percy. She was about to drop the blanket to put on her clothes when she glanced back at Percy. He smiled at her, making her face flush. "Don't look." She said, trying to retain a sense of modesty.

Percy smirked but respected her wishes and closed his eyes. When he opened them, Annabeth had finished getting dressed and draped the covers over his lower body. "Put some clothes on."

"You don't have to be coy with me, Annabeth. I know what you want." He stood up, letting the blankets fall and tried to wrap his arms around Annabeth but she dodged him.

"I need to get back to my cabin before everyone else wakes up." Annabeth knew that her siblings were smart (they were related to her, for goodness sake!). They probably already figured out where she was and who she was with.

"Don't I get a kiss goodbye?" Percy said as Annabeth unlocked the cabin door. She sighed and looked back at him. He had pulled on boxers while Annabeth had walked to the door and his hair was even messier than usual. His playful smirk seemed like it would never disappear from his face. Annabeth smiled and walked back up to him. She got on her tiptoes when he leaned down and put his hand on her cheek as they kissed. "See you later?"

"Yeah." Before Annabeth shut the door she spiritedly blew Percy a kiss.

* * *

As soon as Annabeth turned around from closing the door to the Poseidon Cabin, she was met with the face of Jason. Jason's eyes were wide and he looked embarrassed. Annabeth herself was stunned to see Jason. It was just a little past dawn and the camp was quiet because everyone was still sleeping from staying up late partying last night. Annabeth had hoped that she had woken up early enough to get to her cabin without anyone noticing. She saw Jason gulp.

"You're up early, Jason." This was probably the most awkward moment in Annabeth's life.

Jason felt exactly the same. He had already experienced something like this. When they were still on the Argo II and realized Percy and Annabeth were missing, Jason's head cooked up all sorts of crazy scenarios of what happened to them. But when he found out they were found asleep together, he couldn't help imagining exactly what they did. But he skillfully hid his blush with an expression of relief when they walked into the dinning room of the ship. Now, he had almost walked in on them like Frank had on the Argo II. Except, no doubt, they might have been indecent this time. Jason hated to think about what would happen if he had walked a little faster and opened the door before Annabeth walked out. His blush deepened. Surely they had enough sense to lock the door.

"Uh, yeah. I was hoping to talk to Percy before we have to return to Camp Jupiter." Jason ran a hand through his hair, which had grown a little longer during the quest to Greece and back.

"Well," Annabeth tried to smile casually, "I'll just be on my way then." She walked down the patio stairs and headed towards the Athena Cabin. Annabeth glanced back at Jason to see he had walked to the door of the Poseidon Cabin and knocked. He looked over his shoulder at Annabeth but as soon as he saw that she was looking at him too, he turned away and entered the cabin.

Jason tried to remain calm and banish the blush from his cheeks when he got inside. Percy, fully dressed by now, was sitting on the bed bent over putting on shoes.

"Already back for more, Annabeth?" Percy laughed and looked up. His smile immediately died when he saw it was Jason and not Annabeth. "Oh, its you. I mean, hi, Jason. What do you want? I mean, what's up?" Percy tried his best to not seem rude.

"Hey, Percy." Jason sensed the awkwardness Percy was radiating but ignored it. "I wanted to ask you a question."

"Ask away."

"Why did you say no to being made a god?"

Percy was a little taken aback by Jason's question. Shouldn't the answer be obvious? He had even said his reason for declining: Annabeth.

"I'm needed here." Percy said. "With Annabeth."

"Is Annabeth really the only reason? Is love really that important that you would give up immortality and power for it?"

Percy felt bad for Jason. He could tell that Jason was really having a difficult time with his decision to take the offer of godhood or not. Percy supposed that it was reasonable. He remembered when Reyna first suggested Percy be made praetor of Camp Jupiter. Power was valued much more in the Roman camp than here in the Greek camp. Reyna had even mentioned that it wasn't Roman for Percy to decline power. Percy had only spent a few days in Camp Jupiter but already he could feel how ambitious everyone in the camp was. Jason had grown up in Camp Jupiter being taught that power was highly emphasized his whole life. But then Jason had stayed in Camp Half-Blood where life was more relaxed and he had seen that there are other things in life other than the pursuit of power. So of course Jason would be conflicted.

"Annabeth is the main reason I want to stay mortal. But she isn't the only reason." Jason stared at Percy, listening intently. "If I were to become a god, everything would stay the same for me forever. I don't want things to be stagnant, because as good as I have it right now, I know things could get better." Percy took a deep breath. "Even after I declined the first time, I always worried that fate wouldn't be on my side and things would turn out for the worst. But whenever I just looked at Annabeth, I knew things would be all right. And after seeing Camp Jupiter and all the children of the gods who had children of their own, I'm even more hopeful for the future."

Jason was quiet for a while after Percy had finished his answer. Jason never thought about it the way Percy had. Percy was only a year older than him, but he thought about the long-term consequences of his decisions.

"Oh." Was all Jason could say.

Percy stood up from his bed and put his hand on Jason's shoulder. "I know its a lot to think about and consider. But I know you'll do what you think is best."

Jason cracked a smile. "Thanks." Percy sure was a lot smarter than he looked.

* * *

When the two demigods walked out of the Poseidon Cabin, the Romans were packing up their army tents and looked to be ready to leave soon. Annabeth was standing next to Reyna, Frank, Hazel, Nico, and Leo, waving goodbye to Rachel who retreated into the big house. When Percy and Jason joined them, Percy wrapped his arm around Annabeth's waist and pecked her lips.

"Jason, you spent the night in Percy's cabin? I didn't know you rolled that way." Leo joked, raising his eyebrows up and down suggestively and elbowing Jason in the arm.

"Shut up." Jason said and looked around. "Where's Piper?"

"She hasn't come out of her cabin yet." Annabeth answered while Percy planted more kisses along her neck. She looked slightly embarrassed and playfully pushed Percy away but he wasn't giving up and continued publically displaying his affection for her.

"No, I'm here." Piper said and walked up to stand between Leo and Frank. She didn't even greet Jason or bother to meet his eyes even though he had been the one asking for her. Jason could feel that she wasn't in the mood to talk to him.

"We are leaving for Camp Jupiter soon." Reyna said, breaking the tension between Piper and Jason and redirecting the conversation.

"So soon?" Percy asked, lifting his chin from resting at the top of Annabeth's head. "I was hoping the camps would have more time to spend together."

"We must return to Camp Jupiter as soon as possible. The city and camp still must be rebuilt from the battle with Polybotes and, um…" Reyna trailed off. She was about to mention Leo's possession and attack on the city. Leo must have known what she was going to say because his smile disappeared and he looked down at his shoes. Piper and Hazel put their hands on his shoulders to comfort him. "Anyway," Reyna continued, "its best that we return as soon as possible. The other citizens of the city need to be informed and I think its best that I give them the news of our peace in person."

"All right." Percy said, disappointed but satisfied with Reyna's reasoning.

"Speaking of rebuilding," Reyna turned towards Annabeth. "Since there are no children of Minerva at Camp Jupiter, I was hoping that you would help design the architecture, Annabeth." Annabeth's face lit up. She had finished redesigning Olympus over the eight months while Percy was missing and while they were waiting for Leo to finish work on the Argo II.

Annabeth opened her mouth to speak but she was too excited so a girlish squeal came out instead. She didn't even know she was capable of making such a sound.

"I'll take that as a 'yes.'" Reyna laughed and everyone else joined her except for Piper and Percy. Piper was in no mood to enjoy herself at all. She was too caught up in the Jason-could-possibly-choose-to-become-a-god affair. It had occupied her mind all night and she hardly got any sleep. Percy didn't laugh because although he knew how excited Annabeth must be, he couldn't help but feel sad. If Annabeth went to Camp Jupiter, they would be apart. Again.

Annabeth turned her head to look up at Percy's sullen face. She realized what he was thinking in an instant.

"You'll come with me, right, Percy?" Percy's smile returned to his face and he hugged Annabeth tighter.

"Well, we still have all summer to work on Camp Jupiter." Jason spoke up. "We can build our city pretty quickly. Probably within three days as long as we have blueprints." Percy remembered Hazel mentioning how fast the city could be rebuilt if needed because of the sheer number of campers and their building skills. "So rest for now, Annabeth. We'll go back to Camp Jupiter today and you can join us later."

"Sounds like a plan." Annabeth said.

Dakota walked up to the group after he finished helping Gwen pack up their army tent. "We are all ready to leave, Reyna." He said and then took a swig of his water bottle. The drink got caught in his throat and he coughed up what looked like blood but it was only Kool-Aide. "Excuse me, sorry." He said with an embarrassed smile on his face.

"I'm gonna miss you, man." Percy finally let go of Annabeth to shake Dakota's hand but Dakota converted it into a man-hug.

"The Fifth Cohort will never forget what you've done for us, Percy." Dakota said, his chin on Percy's shoulder. Then he pulled back and gave Percy a toothy, Kool-Aide stained smile. "You'll always be welcome within our ranks."

"Thanks." Percy smiled back and Dakota walked off.

"I guess this is goodbye." Hazel said woefully. She looked like she was about to cry. Leo gave her a hug and she let her tears fall. She clearly did not want to leave just yet, but she belonged at Camp Jupiter. Frank looked at the two hugging and felt nervous that their hug was lasting so long so he pulled Leo off of Hazel. Piper quickly replaced Leo and held Hazel as the daughter of Pluto sobbed while Nico put his hand on her shoulder.

"It's only goodbye for now." Jason said and held his hand out towards Percy. They grasped each other's forearms in a display of camaraderie. The two leaders of their camps had a feeling in the back of their minds that they would be working together again soon and were looking forward to it.

Leo and Frank awkwardly stared at each other. But Leo got over it quickly and opened his arms to hug Frank. Frank stiffened and tried to dodge but Leo was fast and engulfed Frank in a hug.

"Come on, Frank. Ya know ya want to." Leo said mischievously. Frank sighed in annoyance but lightly and uncomfortably patted Leo's back.

"Yeah, yeah, okay, bye." Frank said and pushed Leo off of him. Frank was met with Percy's grin when he turned around.

"Any love for your great-great-great-great-great, a billion times great uncle?" Percy held his arms open but this time Frank happily complied.

While Frank and Percy said their goodbyes, Jason spun Annabeth around in his arms and crushed her in a hug when he set her on her feet.

"I think I'm gonna miss you even more than Percy. Now I'm wishing that Camp Jupiter had some battle-savvy children of Minerva." Jason said. "I know we got off to a rough start, with you hating to even look at me because I kinda took Percy's place."

"That's not true, Jason."

"It's okay, Annabeth. I'd hate me too if I were you."

"I don't hate you."

"Now you don't. But admit it, you did at first."

Annabeth sighed in defeat. "Okay, yeah, I wanted to rip your head off when I found you instead of Percy. No offense." She giggled.

"None taken." They hugged once more before Frank pulled Annabeth away and Leo tackled Jason. "Dammit, Leo." Jason laughed.

"You're still my best friend even though you'll be on the other end of the country, right?" Leo asked pleadingly.

"No, I hate you now." Jason deadpanned but then broke into a smile.

"You know you love me. I bet you love me even more than you love Piper."

Jason glanced over at Piper who was shaking hands with Reyna. It hurt to be so close to her but feel so far away. He needed to fix things. But he was still weighing the consequences of whether to accept immortality or not.

Frank timidly hugged Annabeth. "You know, its no wonder Percy remembered you." He smiled down at her.

"And its no wonder you're related to Percy. I can certainly see the resemblance."

"Don't even joke about that, Annabeth." Frank felt like he needed to defend Percy. For Annabeth to compare Frank to Percy, it was like an insult to Percy. "Percy's brave and strong and a great leader."

"And you aren't?" Annabeth protested. "I've seen you in battle. I know what you're capable of and you seriously are not giving yourself enough credit."

"Thanks, Annabeth. I know you'll take care of Percy."

They looked over towards Hazel and Percy. Hazel got Percy to bend down to her level so she could place a chaste kiss on his cheek. Percy reached into his back pocket and gave Hazel a drachma.

"Octavian gives you any trouble, Iris-message me."

"I will. Thank you, Percy, for everything. I'll see you soon." Hazel said and went to say goodbye to Annabeth.

Annabeth was tearing up seeing Hazel looking so distressed. Annabeth took the (biologically) younger girl in her arms. "Don't cry, Hazel. Percy and I will be at Camp Jupiter soon and we will see each other again."

"I know." Hazel stifled as sob. "But I've just grown so close to you especially. You've become kinda like a big sister to me and I'm just gonna miss kicking monster butt with you."

"Same here." The girls laughed as they held each other.

Meanwhile, Jason was working up the courage to say something to Piper. He desperately wanted to talk to her. But he was deathly afraid that he would end up saying the wrong thing and make her cry like he did on Olympus. She was standing next to Nico, Percy and Reyna, not looking entirely invested in the conversation. But she noticed Jason's eyes on her and looked up. Jason's heart beat faster but when Piper looked away, his mood sunk. Was this her way of communicating that it was over between them? He didn't want to find out because he didn't know what he'd do if the answer was yes.

In their little group, the Greeks gathered next to Percy while the Romans stood behind Jason.

"See you guys around." Percy grinned.

"Yeah, see ya." Jason said sadly, his eyes focused on Piper but she avoided his gaze. The Romans passed the barrier that masked Camp Half-Blood from the rest of the world and looked back at the Greeks one final time before they were off to California. Octavian was sure to shoot Percy a nasty look and flip him off before he walked off with the rest of the Romans.

As soon as they were out of sight, Piper ran off into her cabin.

"What's up with her?" Leo asked.

"Give her time." Annabeth said, her eyebrows knitted together as she looked in the direction of the Aphrodite Cabin.

They went to the pavilion where the rest of the camp had gathered, Chiron at the front of the crowd.

"As celebration of our peace with the Romans and the return of our heroes of the prophecy, I think a friendly game of capture the flag is in order." He announced.

Most of the camp cheered in approval while the rest groaned, still tired from partying last night. The crowd began to disperse to prepare for the game later on that day.

Percy grabbed Annabeth's hand. "I want to be on your team." He whispered. "You come up with the plans and I execute them."

Annabeth giggled and wrapped her free hand around Percy's waist. "Just don't screw them up. You can be such a seaweed brain sometimes, Percy!"

"Which is why we make an unstoppable team, Wise Girl!" He kissed Annabeth's lips and Leo teasingly made a chocking sound, making Percy punch him in the arm. Leo was sure that Percy was just playing. But Leo being Leo, scrawny and unable to bench more than 25lbs., Percy's punch actually hurt even though Percy hadn't meant it to. But Leo was skilled in hiding pain in his expression and he resisted the urge to rub his arm.

"I guess I'd better get going." Nico said suddenly, making Leo, Percy and Annabeth turn to face him.

"Go where, Nico?" Annabeth asked.

"Back to the Underworld." He said it in a matter-of-fact tone. Nico adjusted his pitch-black sword at his side and fixed the collar of his aviator jacket.

"But you'll miss capture the flag! You haven't been here to play since…" Percy thought for a moment, "Well, since you first found out you were a demigod!"

Nico shrugged. "I'm needed elsewhere."

"Aw, come on. At least stay at camp until your arm heals." Percy pointed at Nico's caste covered arm. "One more healing session with the Apollo Cabin and your arm will be as good as new."

"I'm fine. I will see you all in time." With that, Nico walked back to a shadowy patch next to the Hades Cabin and melted into the darkness.

* * *

In the depths of abandoned tunnels under San Francisco, a group consisting of four human-sized figures gathered in a dark corner. Directly across from them stood three Empousa masquerading as beautiful woman but with their hair blazing and eyes glistening with bloodlust. Behind the women were five Laistrygonians giants who looked ready to attack as soon as the Empousa gave the slightest command.

Despite the imposing postures of the monsters, the figures did not look at all fazed. In fact, it seemed as though they were the one calling the shots. One of the figures stepped forward as did what looked like the lead Empousa. She had dark make-up on with full lips and almond shaped eyes and wore a maroon blazer with matching pencil skirt. Her nails were long and painted crimson.

"Is there a reason you have summoned us here?" She asked the figure who had stepped forward.

"We have a task that needs completing." The figure's voice was deep and gruff and although he was cloaked from head to toe, he was obviously male.

"And what makes you think we would do your bidding?" The Empousa asked, her voice cold and demanding.

"Demigods." He said simply but it was enough to make the monsters perk up and listen closely. "If you obey us, we can give you revenge on all demigods who ever existed and put a stop to the further production of future demigods."

The five Laistrygonians giants growled, saliva oozing down their mouths. They were about to step forward but the two other Empousa women held up their hands, halting the hungry monsters.

"We're listening." Said the lead Empousa.

The cloaked figure tossed a rolled up piece of parchment on the ground, which the lead Empousa bent down to pick up. She unrolled it with her assistant Empousa at her side. As soon as they made out what was drawn on the parchment, they gasped.

"The Amulet of Hecate." The lead Empousa whispered. Her eyes narrowed as she looked at the group. "What do you need this for?" Her nails dug into the parchment, ripping holes into it.

"None of your business." Said a female voice behind the leader.

At that statement, the lead Empousa clenched her teeth viciously. "If you want our cooperation, you will tell us what you need with this."

"You will not ask questions." The leader ordered. The monsters snapped their heads in his direction and snarled. "And as a reward for keeping your noses out of our business, we have something for you." The leader held out his hand to his side, signaling the two other figures that hadn't spoken yet. They were tall and seemed to have wide muscles from under their cloaks. When they saw the signal, they brought out something from behind them. They held a crying raven-haired girl, no older than 12-years-old. She was bound and gagged with tears screaming down her brown eyes. Soft but desperate whimpers escaped from her gag.

"A demigod!" The subordinate Empousa declared.

"How did we not sense or even smell her?" The lead Empousa questioned. The demigod girl thrashed against her restrainers but they held onto her firmly. Her hands that were bound behind her back were covered in blood from the cuts around her wrists that she received from struggling against the hard and tight rope.

"We have our ways." The leader said. "Do as we say and this disgusting half-blood is your immediate payment." A shadowy smile peaked out of his hood. "And when we have what we want, you will have all the half-bloods in existence."

"Done." All three of the Empousa women said at the same time. The figures that were holding the girl tossed her forward to the feet of the lead Empousa. The girl screamed in horror through her gag when the Laistrygonians giants leaped forward, four of them holding each of her appendages and pulled her apart. Blood spilled out of her dismembered body and the giants sunk their teeth into the body part they held, chewing uncontrollably. The Laistrygonian giant who didn't participate in the maiming walked over to the main part of the girl's body. She was still alive, but barely. Her eyes became hooded and hollow as she gazed up at the giant approaching her. He stomped his foot on her throat, killing her, then stuffed her abdomen into his mouth. The lead Empousa grabbed the dead girl's head, which had rolled off to the side after the giant lifted his foot off her flattened throat. The dead demigod's head still wore the gag that was now soaked in blood. Turning to her fellow Empousa, the lead Empousa took a bite of the half-blood's face and passed the head around to her sisters.

After the monsters finished eating, they licked at their fingers and around their mouths then turned their attention back to the four cloaked figures.

"And do you have any idea as to where we would find Hecate's Amulet?" A subordinate Empousa asked politely for she was eager to complete their task and be rewarded another delicious demigod.

"Hecate, goddess of magic, resides in the Underworld." The female figure announced. "As to the exact location of this item, you all will have to find that on your own." One Laistrygonian giant didn't seem satisfied with that answer as he stepped forward and roared. None of the figures moved. Their leader simply held out a gun and shot straight towards the giant. The bronze bullet pierced the giant's head and he disintegrated into nothing more than dust.

The other monsters watched in amazement and terror.

The leader blew smoke away from the barrel of his gun. "I suggest you all find us the amulet now." He simply said. The monsters exchanged looks but backed up until their backs were pressed against the shadowy walls and they disappeared.

"Are you sure we can trust them?" The female figure asked her leader. "They are monsters, almost as bad as demigods if you ask me."

Their leader smiled at her. "Of course we can. Like you said, they are monsters. They can't control their lust for demigod flesh. And that's precisely how we control them." He held out his hand towards her and she eagerly grabbed it. With his other hand, he pulled down her hood and then his own. Curly red hair spilled out of her hood and her face was dotted with orange freckles. The man revealed his shaggy black hair under his hood and fierce eyes that seemed to belong to a pit bull. They both looked to still be in their teens but were clearly humans. The leader averted his gaze toward his two other companions who were now kicking around in the puddles of blood.

"Demigods. The have the nerve to call themselves heroes." He scoffed. "More like abominations who never should have been allowed to survive." The redhead nodded in agreement. "Do you know why they are hidden from the world?" He asked but she shook her head. "Because they don't belong among us normal people. They don't have a place in the world. They don't deserve to walk the earth like we do." He dropped the girl's hand and she frowned. "We were given the gift of clear sight because we are destined to purge the world of demigods. We can see the hidden world because we are meant to eliminate them. And we will. Now, while those senseless monsters are doing our bidding, let's hunt us a few demigods to feed to the monsters when they return."

"Yes, sir. But the amulet? What use do we have for it?"

He smiled down at her, but there was no kindness or warmth.

"Hecate holds dominion over the mist. The mist conceals the demigods from the world. If we have the amulet, we have some of Hecate's power. If we control the mist, we control the fate of the demigods. The extermination of demigods is about to begin."

* * *

**Amount of research done on Greek Mythology to write this chapter: none.**

**Thank you for reading and please review.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians.**

* * *

**Mystify**

**Chapter 4**

The Empousai women took their true forms when they entered the Underworld with the Lastrygonians following close behind them. Their movements were swift and they hid whenever they thought another monster was about to cross their path. They couldn't afford to be questioned on their motives. If word got out that they were working for a bunch of mortals, their reputations (although currently nonexistent) would be tarnished. But mostly they worried that if others found out of their delicious reward for obeying the humans' orders, there would be less demigod meat to go around.

Slipping past other monsters, they headed to the lair of Hecate. The Empousai women were under her dominion so they knew where they were supposed to go. When they had spoken to the mortals, they had acted ignorant to see how much the mortals knew. The monsters were planning on devouring them but then the humans presented that wonderfully delectable demigod girl and the monsters lost all interest in eating the mortals. Normally mortals, even clear-sighted ones, were of no interest to monsters. But monsters would feed on anything, even each other, if desperate or angered enough.

"Wait out here." The leader Empousa instructed to the Lastrygonian Giants while she and her sisters entered Hecate's lair. They knew of the goddess's workings. Although she lived in the Underworld, she often spent time in the depths of the sea. She should be there right now. "Sisters, this way."

The Empousai converted their bodies into shadow and slipped inside the cracks of the stone temple. Gods and goddesses were so naïve and arrogant. They never thought anyone would dare to steal from them so they never took precautions. The Empousai laughed at their good luck. They studied the intricate markings on the walls, hoping that it would lead them to where the Amulet of Hecate was hidden. But there were no such directions.

"Where is it?" One Empousa questioned impatiently. She was already getting irritable and impatient, too anxious for another meal.

"Hush." The lead Empousa closed her eyes and concentrated. If she was right, the amulet would be saturated in Hecate's power, allowing the Empousa to sense it. Focusing, the Empousa held her hands to her head and walked around the room. Suddenly, the Empousai women felt a fissure that they knew only they could feel. It was a familiar power. It was the power of Hecate. "Here!"

The Empousai clawed at the wall, ripping the stone apart. When they destroyed a few pounds of stone, they found their prize. A bronze amulet with a glowing purple gemstone shined brightly in their eyes. The leader grabbed it into her hands and hid it on her person.

"Let us take our leave!" She whispered and they transformed into shadows and exited Hecate's lair.

* * *

Katie Gardner was minding her own business, kneeling on the ground, tending to the flower garden at the side of the Demeter Cabin. She hummed a simple tune to herself as she watered the roses.

"What's up, Katie?"

Katie nearly had a heart attack. Upon hearing the voice, she jumped and spilled her watering can.

"Dammit, Travis!" She said and glared at him. Travis just smiled at her innocently. "Where the heck did you come from?" Katie liked to be aware of her surroundings. There had been too many times in the past where she had been careless and unobservant and that caused a monster to attack her. So now, Katie always surveyed her surroundings, even in Camp Half-Blood where it was supposed to be safe. But she had looked around earlier and Travis was nowhere to be found only a second before he showed up.

"Where did I come from? Oh, you don't know where babies come from yet, Katie?" Travis smiled and picked up Katie's watering can for her. Katie snatched it from him and walked to the fountain to fill the can up again. "Need help?" Travis asked, standing next to her.

"No."

"Let me rephrase that: I wanna help you, Katie."

"No, Travis."

"Well, then can I at least hang out with you until its time for capture the flag?"

"No."

"How come?"

"Just leave me alone, Travis. Just like every other day, I don't have the patience for your nonsense."

"I'll shut up, I promise. Just let me hang out with you." He pleaded with a friendly smile on his face.

Katie looked up at Travis. She had seen that smile on his face many times and mistaken it for sincerity too many times. But for some reason, she always gave him the benefit of the doubt even though she knew he didn't deserve it. She sighed, hating her kindness. "Fine, but one word outta you, and you'll be the next meal for the giant Venus Fly Traps the Demeter Cabin recently cultivated."

Travis beamed at her despite her threat of punishment. He took the watering can after it was filled and carried it back to the garden for Katie. Katie raised her eyebrow at him but didn't complain. Travis was keeping his word and being quiet as she continued watering the plants. Katie found it almost enjoyable to be in his presence. When Travis was quiet, he was all right. And it helped that he looked especially handsome when Katie looked up at him and he was bathed in the light of the sun. Katie smiled dreamily then Travis looked at her.

"So you excited for capture the flag? It'll be the first time we play since Percy disappeared."

Katie sighed. Just when she was starting to enjoy Travis's company, he begins talking.

"I thought you would be quiet."

"Eh, I got bored." He shrugged his shoulders. "Don't worry about capture the flag, Katie. If we get on the same team, I'll protect you for sure." Travis smiled at her but Katie scoffed.

"I'm perfectly capable of protecting myself."

"Are you sure? You are just a child of Demeter, plus you're only a girl."

"Only a girl! Are you saying that I can't defend myself because I'm a girl?"

"I, uh, didn't really mean for it to come out that way." Travis put his hands up in front of him.

"It sure sounds like you did!" Katie's face went red in anger. She let out a frustrated growl and roughly threw her watering can to the ground.

Clarisse appeared next to her with her eyebrow raised. "Do you guys mind shutting the fuck up? I can hear your arguing from inside the Ares Cabin."

"Travis is pissing me off!" Katie defended her rage.

"What's all the ruckus going on here about?" Chris Rodriguez said as he walked to stand next to Clarisse.

"Travis said that girls can't defend themselves and need guys to protect them!" Clarisse's eyes went wide at Katie's words then slanted as she gave Travis a murderous glare.

"No, I didn't!" Travis panicked.

"Bullshit!" Clarisse boomed. "Boys would be lost without us girls to supervise them!"

"What's going on here?" Jake Mason said as he and Will Solace walked to the arguing group.

"Oh, nothing." Clarisse said. "Travis is just being a dick. But I guess I can't blame him. As a guy, its in his nature to be a jackass."

Jake and Will exchanged shocked looks. Clarisse didn't have to add in her last comment. She could have just insulted Travis, not the whole male gender.

"Let's be reasonable, Clarisse." Will stepped in to defend guys. "Everyone is different. Just because one guy–" he glanced at Travis who looked like a deer caught in headlights, "–acts like a total douche bag, it doesn't mean all guys are that way."

"Oh, grow up, Will!" Kayla from the Apollo Cabin said when she and Miranda Gardiner joined them. "Guys are slobs." She and Miranda began laughing.

"And girls are so much better at stuff than guys!" Clarisse piped in. Chris, Travis, Jake and Will clenched their fists in agitation.

"Better at what?" Connor said, walking to stand next to his brother with Lou Ellen from the Hecate Cabin by his side.

"Girls are better at everything!" Drew Tanaka called out as she closed the door to the Aphrodite Cabin. "If anything," she said smugly, crossing her arms and standing next to Clarisse, "guys are just accessories while women do all the work."

"That's crazy!" Connor yelled.

"Sounds pretty accurate to me." Lou Ellen said calmly.

"Yeah, well," Connor began. He looked at the other demigods with their eyes staring at him expectantly. But he couldn't think of anything to say. So he just settled on saying something immature. "Girls are stupid!" He declared. "Now all of you, get back in the kitchen and make us sandwiches!"

All the guys started to laugh but the girls gasped and got into battle stances as if they were ready to take down the boys any second.

"That's it!" Katie yelled. "It's on!" She poked Travis in the chest with every word she said.

"Capture the flag!" Clarisse shouted. "Battle of the Sexes Edition!" The girls cheered and shouted, closing in on the boys. The guys looked at each other, a little scared, but more pissed off than scared.

"Fine!" Connor said. "Watch yourselves, ladies. Since you want to be treated 'equally,' we will kick your asses like we would kick any guy's!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

There was a long sting of "fines" followed by loud arguing.

"Fuck you!" Clarisse yelled and pushed Jake down and into Will.

"Don't push him!" Will scolded and helped Jake to his feet.

"Make me, Sunshine!" Clarisse then kicked Will, making him stumble back into Miranda who was busy arguing with Chris.

"Watch where you're going, dumbass!" She punched him in the face. Soon, fists were flying here and there. No one was really sure who had hit them or who they had hit. They just continued fighting. To any bystander, there seemed to be a heap of smoke around the fighting group as if they were in one of those cartoon brawls on TV where the violence was shielded from the audience with white clouds.

Annabeth and Percy walked by holding hands and although their fellow campers were consumed by anger while engaged in their fight, Annabeth and Percy thought the scene looked quite comical and stifled their laughter.

"ENOUGH!" Chiron's voice thundered from the big house. Everyone suddenly stopped fighting. Drew had Jake in a headlock while Lou Ellen was getting ready to kick his gut. Clarisse held Travis over her head, about to throw him at Will while Will was having trouble restraining Katie from ganging up on Chris with Kayla. Connor had pinned Miranda to the ground. "What has gotten into you all?"

Clarisse dropped Travis and he fell gracelessly to the ground. He lay there motionless for a while until Clarisse roughly nudged his shoulder with her foot then Travis got to his feet, rubbing his head.

"We've all agreed that capture the flag will be girls against boys." Clarisse said calmly as if she wasn't just involved in a scuffle. She dusted off her hands while the other campers straightened out their roughed up clothes and hair.

Chiron shook his head at his campers but agreed to the demigods' terms. He then went back to playing pinochle with Mr. D who hadn't even noticed (or maybe just didn't care) that the campers were fighting.

The previously quarrelling group began to disperse separating into their respective genders. The boys were following Jake to the Hephaestus Cabin to strategize. Katie was about to walk into her cabin with the rest of the girls when Travis grabbed her upper arm. She turned to glare at him.

"Katie, don't be mad." He pleaded. Katie just snatched her arm out of his grasp and slammed the door in his face, leaving Travis standing there.

* * *

Percy and Annabeth smiled at each other as they sat on the pier of the canoe lake with their legs hanging off the edge.

"Its gonna be a bloodbath." Percy joked, referring to the game of capture the flag that's been twisted into a battle of the sexes.

"How ridiculous." Annabeth said, taking off her flip-flops and dipping her feet into the water. "Fighting is solely based on skill and experience, not gender."

"I know, right?" Percy grinned down at her and wrapped an arm around her waist. She leaned her head on his shoulder. "So obviously we will win," he said without thinking. But then realization struck him and he gulped, feeling Annabeth scoot away from him.

"What is that suppose to mean, Seaweed Brain?"

"Uh…" Percy averted his eyes from Annabeth's gaze nervously. "I just hope the guys will win."

"No, you said 'obviously we,' as in the guys 'will win.'" Annabeth glared. Her lips turned downwards in a frown but it looked more like a pout to Percy. He tried not to be caught up in how cute she looked because he knew he was in so much trouble. But he wasn't going to let Annabeth know he was scared. If there is anything he learned from his mom and dating Annabeth, it's that women can sniff out the tiniest amount of fear.

"There's nothing wrong with wanting the guys to win because it's my team." Percy defended himself and tried to hug her, showing her that he had no ill intentions with his earlier comment.

Annabeth scooted further away from him, getting out of reach of his hug. "Yeah, except you won't win."

"Wanna bet?" Percy dared.

"What did you have in mind?"

Percy looked over the lake as he thought. A mischievous smile crept onto his face. "Tyson went back to the cyclopes forges earlier today. That means I have my cabin all to myself. So if the guys win… You have to do whatever I want you to and you can't do a thing about it." His voice held undertones of lust.

"Fine!" Annabeth stood up and put her flip-flops back on. "And _when_ the girls win, I shall take revenge for women everywhere by forcing you to make me sandwiches and give me backrubs whenever I please!"

Percy laughed and stood up with her. "That doesn't sound too bad."

Annabeth narrowed her eyes. "And no sex."

Horror spread across Percy's face as the words left Annabeth's lips. Seeing Percy's face, Annabeth smiled. She liked sex, too. But she would just have to sacrifice it if it meant punishing Percy. Her boyfriend looked like he wanted to say something but couldn't.

"You heard me." Annabeth said and left to join the girls in the Demeter Cabin.

She walked into a packed Demeter Cabin. It looked like every female camper fifteen and older was in there. Even Piper was there, although she was laying down on one of the bunks and facing the wall. Annabeth settled on sitting on the floor.

"We can't lose!" Clarisse announced. "We will never hear the end of it if we lose!"

"Yeah!" The girls agreed.

"Any strategies?" Katie asked and everyone looked at Annabeth but Drew interrupted.

"Guys are pigs so we should wear as little clothing as possible! How about we play in our bikinis?" Drew suggested. Many of the girls nodded their heads in agreement.

"We can't do that!" Annabeth protested. "There will be younger campers competing and watching, too. What message will we be sending to the younger girls if we use our bodies to win the competition?"

"Don't you want to win, Annabeth?" Katie asked. All eyes turned to Annabeth questioningly.

"Well, yeah, but-"

"Listen, guys are biologically physically stronger than girls. So to make up for it, we should use what we were born with to win! There's nothing wrong with using our assets to our advantage! I would think that a daughter of Athena wouldn't decline to using any strategy necessary." Drew explained. But Annabeth continued to give her a disapproving look. "Fine, no bikinis." Drew surrendered. She put her finger on her chin to think. "Daisy dukes and midriffs?" Everyone applauded her new idea.

Annabeth sighed sensing that nothing she could say would change their minds. "Fine…" The girls all stared at her. "What?"

"You were quick to give in." Katie observed. "You made a bet with Percy, didn't you?"

"Maybe!" Annabeth said. The girls then filed out of the Demeter Cabin to get ready for capture the flag.

* * *

The boys' eyes almost popped out of their heads and their jaws dropped when the teams lined up on opposite sides. The girls arranged to exclude the younger campers from the game and gave them their own separate game away from the more mature (and horny) campers. So the girls had nothing on their conscience about setting a bad example for the younger girls. All of the older girls were wearing super short shorts. Each of them had their bellies exposed and deep V-necklines.

Percy stared wide-eyed at Annabeth. She was wearing an outfit similar to the other girls. The only armor the girls wore were shin guards, shoulder pads and metal armbands. They stood with one hip higher than the other, smiling seductively.

Percy and some of the other guys exchanged looks and nodded. They dropped their swords and shields then proceeded to take off their breastplates and shirts. Their breastplates clinked on the ground when they picked up their swords and shields again, smiling widely at the girls and flexing their biceps.

"No fair!" Drew shouted from the back. She wiped some drool spilling from the side of her mouth.

"We had a feeling you girls would pull something like this." Percy said. "We had to have some kind of counter. Ready to lose, Wise Girl?"

"Shut up and fight, Seaweed Brain."

* * *

Katie and Lou Ellen entered enemy territory like Annabeth had ordered. They snuck past units of shirtless teenage boys, with Katie using her plant powers to hide her and Lou Ellen occasionally casting an illusion so the boys were not suspicious of any sounds, like the snap of a twig, they made. The girls were close to approaching the halfway point indicating they were close to where the boys' flag was when a leaf fell on Katie's nose. She looked up and gasped.

"Lou Ellen! Look out!" Katie grabbed the magical girl and they jumped out of the way of the ambush.

"For sons of Hermes, you two aren't very stealthy." Lou Ellen laughed and drew her sword.

"Baby, when you're this handsome, it's impossible not to be seen!" Connor said and slashed at her. The two engaged in a swordfight. Connor was on the defense with Lou Ellen constantly jabbing at him and not giving him an opening.

Meanwhile, Travis was having a difficult time taking Katie seriously as she tried to stab him in his bare chest. It wasn't that he didn't find her a worthy opponent or had sexist views, but if there was even the slightest chance that he might hurt Katie… Travis didn't want to think about it. He blocked most of her blows and could see that she was getting frustrated. But he also had a hard time ripping his eyes off her body to concentrate on the fight. Although both sides employed a dirty trick by playing on each other's hormones and sexual frustration, Travis knew it worked. From the beginning of their game, he noticed campers from both sides become distracted and make stupid mistakes.

Travis barely dodged Katie's attempt to slice his head off when he heard his brother yelp. He glanced over and saw Connor on his back. Lou Ellen stood above him, pointing her sword at his throat. Connor blushed when Lou Ellen bent down so her face was level with his. She held out her hand and blew purple sparkling dust in Connor's face, making him fall back in apparent slumber. Lou Ellen giggled.

Seeing his brother in danger, Travis raced towards him. There was a tug on his ankle but he ignored it and kept running. The next thing Travis knew, he was hanging upside down, suspended by an ivy vine wrapped around his ankle.

"Yay! Win for the girls!" Katie cheered as she walked so she was directly below Travis. "Still think I need your protection, Travis?" The girls laughed and Connor stood up, clutching his head and stumbling around like he was half asleep.

"Con!" Travis yelled getting Connor's attention. "Screw this! Let's just get the flag!" Connor nodded.

"Now, hold on!" Katie said and she and Lou Ellen pointed their swords at Connor. "You two aren't going anywhere."

Connor held up his hands in surrender, but in the blink of an eye, he disappeared from sight.

"What the hell?" Lou Ellen said and looked up towards Travis. "They're both gone!"

"Wha–" Katie made the vine descend towards them and noticed that the part that was previously constricting around Travis's ankle was limp. "How can this be?"

* * *

Piper was using capture the flag as an outlet for her frustration towards Jason. She wanted to say goodbye to him and maybe even journey to Camp Jupiter with him to make sure he made it back safe. But she could tell that he was still mentally debating whether or not to take godhood and it pissed her off to no end.

She didn't even bother using her charmspeak to neutralize any enemy campers. As soon as they saw her they froze. For once, Drew came up with a useful idea, Piper thought, mildly impressed with the girl she wished wasn't her sister. Piper wasn't fazed by the sight of any of the boys, not even Percy, and wow, was he a hottie. Piper's affections were too attached to Jason that sometimes she didn't even notice other boys.

Running by herself defending the girls' territory, she successful repelled any attempted by the boys to get past her. She had just karate chopped the back of Clovis's neck, knocking him out when Leo approached her cautiously.

"Hey, Beauty Queen!" Leo smiled. Piper rolled her eyes. "So remember that one time I totally saved you from Ma Gasket and her cyclopes?" Piper nodded but pointed her dagger at Leo. "Well, I'm calling you in right now on a solid 'you owe me' so if you don't mind, I'll just be on my way…" Leo tried to speed walk past Piper but she stepped in front of him and punched him in the nose. "Well! That was certainly uncalled for, Miss McLean!" Leo said in an exaggerated British accent, clutching his nose that began dripping blood from one nostril.

"Sorry, Leo, but I'm gonna have to ask for a rain check on that I.O.U." Piper bent down and caught Leo's legs in a sweeping kick, tripping him.

"You can't do that! It's against the rules of I.O.U's! I demand to speak to the manager!" Leo tried to get up but Piper put her hand on his face and pushed him down.

"Come on, Leo, you and me, one on one!" Piper leaped backwards and got into her battle stance.

Leo stood up and cracked his neck. "All right, Pipes, you're on! I've always wanted to say this: Can't stand the heat?" His whole body ignited in flames. "Get outta the kitchen."

"Lame!" Piper yelled and charged Leo. He threw fireballs at her but she was too agile. She evaded each of his blasts in an acrobatic display and somehow appeared behind him. "Jump into the stream." Piper used charmspeak. "Then take a nap!"

"Dammit!" Leo said as he ran towards the water and dove in, dosing his fire. Piper watched him climb out and fall asleep on the bank. She smiled in victory but that smile melted away when Percy emerged out of the stream.

"Nice work, Piper. But let's see how you handle me." Percy willed water to form a wave and he surfed on top of it towards Piper. She tried to stand her ground, but the wave crashed into her and knocked her off her feet. She stood up as quickly as possible, now soaking wet. Percy stood in front of her.

"Punch yourself in the face." Piper commanded but Percy pointed at his ears.

"What was that, Pipes? Sorry, can't hear your charmspeak on account of the candle wax I put in my ears. Little trick I used when Annabeth and I encountered the Sirens." He drew his sword.

Piper growled and charged towards him, attempting to stab him with her knife. But Percy easily dodged and blocked every slash of her knife. She tried to throw in a few punches but Percy was obviously stronger than her and caught her fist in his hand.

"Sorry, Piper." He said and twisted her arms behind her back making her wince. Percy grabbed both of her wrists in one hand and commanded water to wrap around her hands and ankles and freeze. "Don't worry. It won't give you frostbite. See ya later!" He pushed her down, making her land on her face. "Opps, that wasn't suppose to happen!"

He raced away towards where he thought the enemy flag was. Approaching the headquarters of the girls' territory, Percy was surprise when he didn't run into any more enemy guards. The girls' flag was in sight and he ran faster and removed the candle wax from his ears.

"Not so fast, Seaweed Brain!" He heard Annabeth's voice but didn't see her anywhere. Suddenly he felt a kick to the back of his knees and he fell forward.

"Annabeth!" Standing up, Percy drew Riptide and stood as still as possible. "Come on out!" He felt a punch on the back of his head and turned around. Annabeth was never above using trickery when it came to winning and her hat of invisibility was her go-to trick. Percy closed his eyes and concentrated. He could hear her footsteps circling around him. Then the air around his face shifted indicating that a punch was coming. He reached out and grabbed Annabeth's forearm and dropped his sword to remove her invisible cap. Annabeth's form shimmered into sight. "Got ya." Percy stuffed her hat into his back pocket.

Annabeth's eyes widened at Percy's skill. The two hadn't sparred in months and Percy was so much more amazing than he was before he was kidnapped. Remembering his kidnapping inflamed rage in her. Although she was relieved and happy that he was with her again, the fact that he was stolen from her in the first place still infuriated her. How dare he let himself be kidnapped! Grapping his arm that grasped hers, she repositioned their weight and flipped Percy over her shoulder. Percy grunted when Annabeth sat on his stomach and drew her knife, pointing it at his throat.

"I am strangely turned on." Percy grinned up at her. He put his hands on her waist and ran his hands up her back.

Annabeth shivered and bent down to lay her lips on his collarbone. Percy laughed, rolling them over so that he was on top. Annabeth gasped in pleasure when he began kissing her neck. But she remembered where they were and pushed him off.

"Don't forget we have a deal." Annabeth stood up. Percy shook his head.

"Come on, Annabeth, we both know my team will win."

"Not a chance. I have an undefeated record. And I'm not about to lose to a team of incompetent boys." She darted towards Percy. He stood his ground and slashed at Annabeth. She dodged last minute, leaving Percy open. A solid punch landed on his cheek and a cut appeared on his chest.

"Hey!" Percy yelled.

"Maybe you shouldn't have discarded your breastplate." Annabeth mocked.

He blocked Annabeth's knife with Riptide and flicked it out of her hand. Annabeth scoffed. She made a dive to grab her knife but Percy threw Riptide to the side and tackled her in midair. They wrestled on the ground and Annabeth ended up on top, pressing her forearm to his neck.

"Pinned you!"

Percy growled at her and tried to flip them over again but she stabilized them. He struggled more but Annabeth pressed her thumb into his neck in a precise movement, seemingly paralyzing him. Percy lay motionless.

"What the hell?" He yelled. Annabeth laughed and kissed his lips.

"Looks like you're down for the count, Seaweed Brain."

There was a commotion coming from where the girls' flag was and Annabeth looked up. The Stoll brothers were laughing hysterically, running away from an enraged Clarisse. Looking a little closer, Annabeth noticed Travis had the girls' blue flag in his hand. Clarisse was rounding in on the Stolls and right when she had her hands on their necks, they disappeared into thin air. Clarisse examined her hands in confusion. Annabeth gasped.

"Aw, what's that face for, Annabeth?" Percy said. Annabeth looked back at him with her eyes wide eyes.

The next moment, Chiron galloped past them with the Stolls on his back announcing that the boys had won. The campers gathered around, the girls with their arms crossed and the boys hoisted the Stolls onto their shoulders and cheered. Piper and Leo emerged from the woods coming from the stream. Piper was rubbing her wrists. Leo had melted off the ice binding her.

Annabeth stood up, Percy's limp body on the ground by her side. She lost. For the first time, she lost.

"They cheated!" Lou Ellen shouted and pointed her fingers accusingly at the Stolls. Everyone turned to her. "They cheated somehow! I know they did!"

"Yeah!" Katie agreed. "We had them in our grasp and they just disappeared without a trace!"

"I had my hands on them and they disappeared, too!" Clarisse said.

Everyone looked towards the Stolls riding on their comrades' shoulders. The brothers glanced at each and shrugged, growing impish smiles on their faces.

"We have no idea what the girls are talking about." Connor smiled with Travis nodding in agreement. Katie, Lou Ellen, and Clarisse glared at them, hate seething out of their bodies. Travis smiled at Katie and blew her a kiss. She scoffed.

"Well, gotta bolt." Travis said. He held his hand up to his brother and when the brothers high-fived, they were gone. The campers, including Chiron, gapped.

"Told you!" Clarisse yelled. "Disqualify the boys, Chiron!"

"I'm sorry, Clarisse, but the boys won. Perhaps the Stolls used a magical item. All magical devices are permitted." Chiron explained.

"Hmph!" Clarisse huffed.

The campers dispersed and by this time, feeling returned to Percy's body and he stood up. Annabeth was standing in one place, still stunned that she was on the losing team. Percy came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. Annabeth didn't resist as Percy nuzzled his nose into her hair behind her ear.

"My cabin. After campfire. Have I got plans for you." He whispered.

* * *

**Thank you for reading and please leave a review.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians.**

**This story was at first unofficially discontinued which just means a very long hiatus with a chance of permanent discontinuation. But after posting the news of discontinuation, I felt like a total douche bag (not to mention review whore) for wanting to discontinue just because of the lack of reviews. I know that when I come across a story that gets discontinued because of few reviews, I get pissed off and think the author is a total sell out. I guess that makes me a hypocrite. But after reading some wise words from two special people and massive reconsideration, I've decided to continue this story. I hope you aren't mad at me for my fickle decisions because I already feel disappointed in myself for saying I'm discontinuing in the first place. With that said, although this is not a new chapter, I wanted to get the news out and you can expect a new chapter soon.**

**To Random Reviewer: Thank you so so much for your review. You succeeded in cheering me up because I couldn't stop smiling when reading what you wrote. I feel like a total hypocrite for having discontinued my story based on reviews because I know how frustrating it is to come across a story and realize that it's been discontinued. And when you were describing how it feels to write stories, I totally understand how you feel because you just described what it's like when I write stories. I wish I could have PMed you so I can thank you directly since there is no way of knowing if you will ever see this but still, thank you for your beyond kind words. **

* * *

**Mystify**

**Chapter 5**

Right before the campfire sing along, Percy left Annabeth's side to send an Iris-message to his mother. He was gone for quite a while. The sing alongs were almost complete.

"Any requests for the last song?" Will asked with his acoustic guitar hanging in front of him.

Leo's hand shot up. "Puff the Magic Dragon! Play Puff the Magic Dragon! I want to hear Puff the Magic Dragon!" Leo yelled. "But if you wouldn't mind, change 'Puff' to 'Festus' and 'Jackie Paper' to 'Leo Valdez.' That would be awesome." Next to him, Piper face palmed and took a few steps away from Leo, not wanting to be associated with him.

Will gave Leo a confused look but no one else voiced their opinion on Leo's request nor suggested another song. "Um, okay." He tuned his guitar then began strumming chords. "Festus the magic dragon lived by the sea…"

Leo was the only camper who sang along with the rest of the Apollo Cabin. Every member of the Apollo Cabin looked like they wanted to crawl under a rock. The campfire was large and gold. The strange thing was it grew larger and the golden hue grew deeper. Leo must have had enough dedication, excitement and happiness that he made up for all the other campers who didn't bother singing along.

Annabeth covered her mouth to prevent a laugh from escaping when there was a tug on her arm and Percy was leading her to the Poseidon Cabin. When they were inside, Percy made sure to lock the door.

"Well, Annabeth? Are you ready to pay for losing the bet?" He asked, walking up to her and running his hands down her bare arms. Annabeth shivered as Percy kissed her.

"If the Stolls didn't cheat, you'd be giving me a backrub right about now." She feigned anger and turned her head away when Percy tried to kiss her again. He wasn't offended and started kissing her neck. Annabeth leaned her head to the side to expose her neck more. She could feel a smile on Percy's lips as he backed her up and pushed her down onto his bunk.

"Lay on your stomach." He said and Annabeth rolled over to do as he said. Percy moved her hair to the side and began messaging her shoulders. "There, happy?"

Annabeth moaned in reply making Percy smirk. Continuing to message her, he slipped his hands under her shirt. Annabeth didn't react so Percy ran his hands further up her back until he got to her bra strap and unhooked it. Annabeth rolled over and lifted herself on her elbows.

"Percy! Why are you such a pervert?"

"Sorry!" He rested himself on top of her. "But if you had a girlfriend as hot as you, you'd understand."

Annabeth giggled, put her arms around his neck and kissed his nose. "I guess if I want to know why you are so perverted, I should start looking for a girlfriend."

"No way. You're mine." Percy took off his shirt.

"And you're mine."

"Now time to pay up, Annabeth." Percy helped her remove her shirt. "You're in for it tonight."

Annabeth faked a surprised gasp. "Are you going to punish me for beating your ass during our spar in capture the flag?"

"Hell yeah." Percy smirked and their lips met.

* * *

The demigods of Camp Jupiter traveled fast. In only one day, they were already more than half way across the country and were settling down for the night. It had been a long and tiresome day so most of the campers were already asleep in their army tents. The only people who were still awake and gathered around a campfire were Jason, Hazel, Frank, Reyna and Octavian. Jason sighed in a heavily annoyed fashion when Octavian walked over and sat next to Reyna.

"So about the new elections for praetor…" Octavian began. Reyna rolled her eyes and avoided meeting his gaze, instead focusing on the fire.

"There isn't going to be an new election, Octavian. Jason will simply resume his post before he was taken away." Rayna said, obviously irritated.

"He's been gone eight months! This is unprecedented! No praetor in Camp Jupiter history has left for such a long time!" He argued.

"Would you lower down your voice?" Hazel hissed at Octavian. His head snapped in her direction and Hazel immediately lost her confidence.

Frank noticed Hazel shrink away. "Hazel's right. You need to be considerate of the other campers who are trying to sleep."

"Screw them! This matter is much more important." Octavian's frown deepened as he returned to face Reyna. "Well? I demand new elections take place!"

"No, Octavian!" Reyna put her fingers to her forehead, nursing the headache Octavian always gave her. She glared at him. Just looking at him or hearing his name pissed her off.

"I can't believe this!" Octavian pointed at Jason. "You won't get away with this, you hear me, Grace?"

"Settle down, Octavian." Reyna said.

"Why do you alone get to decide whether there should be a new election or not?" Octavian asked Reyna, his eyes narrowing dangerously. "Last time I checked, Camp Jupiter was a democracy!"

"Fine, then. Everyone in favor of removing Jason as praetor and holding new elections?" Reyna asked the group sitting at the campfire. Only Octavian raised his hand. "All in favor of reinstating Jason as praetor and Octavian shutting up on the matter before I kick his ass?" Reyna, Jason, Hazel and Frank all raised their hands but Frank quickly retracted his vote.

"Uh, can there be an option where Jason remains praetor _and_ you beat up Octavian?" Everyone except Octavian, of course, laughed.

"Fine, fine. Let's see what others will think when we get back home." Octavian crossed his arms like a child throwing a tantrum.

Reyna giggled but her smile died when she looked at Jason. He was staring at the fire with no emotion on his face.

"Jason, are you all right?" She asked. Jason's eyes made contact with her and he blinked a few times before realizing that she had spoken to him.

"Hmm?"

"I asked if you are all right." Reyna responded.

Frank and Hazel exchanged worried looks. They knew Jason was having trouble deciding on his ordeal, but Jason usually wasn't so distracted.

"I'm okay. It's just…" He trailed off but it was enough to grab everyone's attention including Octavian's.

"Just what, Jason?" Reyna was worried. Even before he disappeared, Reyna often counseled Jason and got him to talk because he never wanted to trouble others with his problems. She wanted him to realize that it was okay to open up to the people he cared about. At least, Reyna hoped that Jason considered her someone he cared about.

Jason took a deep breath. He didn't want to involve anyone else in his decision making because it was his decision alone. But then he thought of Piper. There were other people in his life that would be affected by his choice. So don't they have the right to know too? Hazel and Frank already knew what he was offered because they were there. Truth be told, Jason didn't care if Octavian knew or not. Looking towards Reyna, he saw how worried she looked. Yes, he should tell her. She deserved to know.

"When we were on Mt. Olympus, the gods offered to make me and Percy gods." Reyna's eyes widened in surprise while Octavian's narrowed in jealousy. "I've asked for time to weigh my options."

"What the hell is your problem?" Octavian asked, looking over Jason critically. "Take godhood already!"

"Shut up, Octavian!" Jason shook his head in frustration. "You don't understand. I want to accept, but I'm not sure I can leave my mortal life behind. If I do choose to accept, I don't want to have any regrets."

Reyna's eyes saddened. If Jason accepted, she would probably never see him again. But that's not what troubled her. What troubled her so was that a year ago, Jason would have accepted in a heartbeat. He was Roman, after all, and power was everything. But he's changed. He was not the same Jason anymore. She knew he was mostly the same but had no idea that spending time in Camp Half-Blood with the gentler Greeks could change him.

"What about Percy?" Reyna asked. Maybe Percy could provide an example for Jason.

"He wants to stay mortal." Jason answered. "No surprise there since it's what he decided the first time he was offered immortality."

"He turned down godhood twice?" Octavian asked, disgusted. "Gods, I hate that guy."

"It's because of Annabeth, isn't it?" Reyna asked with a gentle smile on her face. There was a time when Reyna thought she could make Percy her lover. But just seeing the way Percy looked at Annabeth, Reyna knew that the two were meant for each other and she was happy for them. She lightly chuckled to herself. Funny how a stoic and strong daughter of Bellona, the Roman goddess of war, could understand when two people were so in love with each other like Percy and Annabeth.

"Of course it's because of Annabeth." Jason answered fondly but his smile faltered. "But that's him and I'm no Percy. I just don't know what to do. If I take it, I'll be immortal. But then nothing will ever be the same… and Piper…"

Octavian rolled his eyes. "Don't be an idiot! If you were really Roman, you'd take godhood. Don't shame the Romans by showing weakness and no initiative."

Jason glared at Octavian but calmly stood up and retreated into his personal army tent.

"Are you even human?" Frank asked Octavian. "Can't you see how troubled he is?"

"Whatever."

"Frank's right, Octavian." Hazel spoke up. "You didn't have to go so far as to say he would shame us if he didn't take this opportunity."

"Oh, shut up, Hazel. You all know it's true."

Reyna resisted the urge to slap Octavian upside the head. "Octavian, remind me to sever your balls when we get back to Camp Jupiter."

Octavian gulped.

* * *

Nico patrolled the Fields of Punishment with his Stygian iron sword drawn. The engery he gave off was usually enough to ward away any monsters but sometimes the more stubborn ones needed convincing, which is why Nico always had his sword drawn. He may have looked a little strange with a caste and sling on his arm but the sword made up for it and allowed Nico to keep his air of intimidation.

The Ghost King hardly ever ran into trouble on patrol. He didn't even know why Hades insisted on sending him out. Nico secretly thought it was because Hades didn't want to deal with Nico and Persephone at each other's necks every waking moment they were together. But Persephone was with her mother, Demeter, this time of year. Nico figured he was still being sent out of the palace on patrol because Hades wanted to be consistent.

Nico always had the same route. It was the route that allowed him to cover the most ground but at the same time avoid any direct contact with any souls in the Fields of Punishment. He trained himself to never stray away from looking forward because no matter how many times he would see the wicked be punished for their crimes, it never became any easier to look at.

A suspiciously large group of monsters caught his eyes. _Odd_, he thought, _monsters usually don't travel in packs more than two or three._ His eyes narrowed as he observed them. Three Empousai were leading four Lastrygonians giants out of the Fields of Punishment and looked like they were getting ready to shadow travel away.

"Hold!" Nico yelled and approached. The monsters stared at him with hunger in their eyes. One Lastrygonian giant lashed out at Nico but he easily slashed his sword forward, instantly slaying the giant.

"Look, sisters." One Empousa said. "If it isn't the little prince of the dead."

"What are you all doing here?" Nico questioned and pointed his sword at them. Each of the monsters, one by one, took notice of Nico's caste covered arm.

"Can we just eat him?" Another Empousa asked desperately.

"No." Nico heard what looked like the leader of the group whisper. "Once we deliver our package, we will have all the demigods we want."

_Package?_

"I'll ask again: What are you doing here?" Nico yelled.

The lead Empousa frowned at him. She did not look at all pleased with his tone. "Fine, kill him." She said simply and the rest of the monsters raced towards Nico.

He was quick to dodge every giant's fist and every Empousa's claw. The monsters regrouped to surround the demigod. Nico held his breath as the monsters jumped towards him all at once but he quickly dove out of the way between two giants. It was too late for the monsters to stop themselves and they smashed against each other. Nico smirked and stabbed another giant. The giant roared in pain and disintegrated. The other giants and Empousa cried out for the fallen monster and the Empousai sprinted towards Nico. Evading their teeth and claws, Nico rounded in on the two remaining Lastrygonian giants and expertly stabbed his sword into the knee of one, making the monster fall forward and into the other giant. They struggled to stand up and Nico took that opportunity to slice through their throats and they disappeared.

The remaining Empousai backed away from Nico. They hadn't expected him to put up such a fight, especially with a broken arm.

"Ready to die?" Nico asked.

But the Empousai exchanged wary looks. Nico gripped his sword tighter. Suddenly, the Empousai women surged forward. Nico tried to swing his sword again but they morphed into living shadow and surrounded him. Their shadowy forms ravaged Nico's body; dark claws slashing and blackened teeth penetrating his skin. Nico bit his lip when teeth locked around his wrist making him release his sword. He dropped to his knees and the Empousai returned to their normal bodies. One Empousa materialized behind Nico, grabbed his upper arms and sank her teeth into his shoulder, taking out a large chunk of flesh. Nico fell forward next to his sword. The Empousai women laughed at the little demigod lying in front of them.

"Two meals in one day? Lovely!" One said.

"Let's devour this child of Hades. He is a good beginning to the eradication of all half-bloods." Another said. "Once we deliver _them_ their prize, it shall begin. Who knew someone with mortal blood could be so deliciously cruel?"

The Empousa that bit into his shoulder lifted Nico up by grabbing a fistful of his hair. Nico winced but slammed his fist into her face. She dropped him and held her face while her sisters tried to tackle Nico. He maneuvered out of the way towards his sword. Sheathing it, he held his bleeding shoulder and ran with a limp towards the shadows of several boulders. As he glanced backwards, he saw the Empousa pursuing but he melted into the boulders' darkness and shadow traveled to safety.

* * *

Percy and Annabeth cuddled under the blankets, enjoying the afterglow of their coupling. Annabeth was falling asleep and Percy nuzzled his face into Annabeth's shoulder when he heard moans of pain coming from the corner of the cabin. Alarmed, he looked for the source of the sound and saw a bloody Nico, his caste ripped to shreds with his broken arm limp at his side and he was gripping his bleeding shoulder with his other arm. Nico leaned against the cabin wall, staining it with blood and didn't seem to notice the other residents of the cabin yet. He was too focused on his pain.

"Holy shit, Nico! What happened?" Percy got out of bed, slipping on boxers and running to aid his friend.

Percy's outburst woke Annabeth. She screamed when she saw Nico and clutched the blanket tighter to her chest. Nico gasped when he heard her, his eyes now locked on her form. A dark blush painted his cheeks and he tried to turn away but fell on the floor. Percy helped him up, setting him on an empty bunk. Annabeth, with Percy's sheets covering her body, grabbed her discarded clothes and rushed into the cabin bathroom.

"Nico, snap out of it!" Percy lightly slapped Nico's cheek several times, pulling Nico out of his haze. But Nico's eyes got heavy and he fainted from his severe loss of blood. "Dammit." Percy sighed.

Annabeth emerged from the bathroom fully dressed. "Take him to the infirmary. I'll go get Will." She said and promptly left. Percy sighed and put on his clothes and shoes. He slung Nico's unbroken arm over his shoulder and made his way out of the Poseidon Cabin to the infirmary.

Soon Will walked into the infirmary and began signing a hymn to Apollo, healing most of Nico's flesh wounds. Percy laid out some nectar and ambrosia on the nightstand of Nico's bed. Nico woke up after a few minutes and took a sip of nectar.

"I told you not to leave until your arm was all better." Percy lectured. Nico ignored him and continued taking small sips of nectar. Will left after a while to inform Chiron of Nico's condition. "So what happened to you?"

"Uh." Nico's cheeks were still stained with a blush. Percy's eyes narrowed.

"How long were you watching?" He accused, ready to strangle Nico if the boy's answer was not to Percy's liking.

"I wasn't watching! I was there a second and then you ran up to me." Nico explained.

"Well, don't you knock? What if we were… you know… You should respect other people's privacy!"

"I thought you'd be sleeping! Besides, I was practically bleeding to death so I shadow traveled directly into your cabin." Nico defended himself. "Did you want me to shadow travel outside your cabin, knock, and bleed to death? Did you, Percy?"

Percy rolled his eyes. "You, um, didn't see anything, did you?" Percy hoped that Nico knew what he was referring to.

"No." Nico's blush grew. "She was already covered when I looked at you guys." He sounded a little dissatisfied. Percy let out a sigh of relief but glared at Nico's tone of disappointment.

Annabeth walked in and stood next to Percy by Nico's bedside. "Are you okay, Nico?" She asked, avoiding meeting Nico's eyes.

Nico didn't answer and only stared at her. Percy roughly elbowed the side of Nico's head. "I'm fine. Thanks for your concern."

"So what happened to you?" Percy got right to the point because he was still a little pissed that Nico ruined his night with his girl.

"I was attacked."

"No, duh." Percy rolled his eyes. Annabeth slapped his arm.

"Can you let me finish?" Percy gestured for him to go on. "Thank you. I was attacked when I was patrolling the Fields of Punishment. I saw a weird group of monsters."

"Is there such thing as a normal group of monsters?"

"Percy, shush!" Annabeth nudged him.

"Sorry."

"Anyway, they outnumbered me." Nico continued and glanced at Annabeth. "But I took out four Lastrygonian giants." He quickly added, attempting to impress her. Annabeth nodded. "The three Empousai were more powerful than I thought. Right before I escaped, they were talking about the eradication of half-bloods. And then something about someone with mortal blood being cruel."

"Mortal blood?" Annabeth questioned. "Do you think they might be working for rogue demigods?"

"But why would a demigod what to exterminate other demigods?" Percy asked.

"That's a head-scratcher." Percy, Annabeth and Nico flinched at the new voice.

"Travis! Where did you come from?" Annabeth demanded. "Campers are suppose to be asleep in their cabins!"

"I didn't hear the door open. How'd you get in here?" Percy asked.

"That's not important." Travis dismissed the question. He vanished before their eyes and reappeared closer to Nico's bed.

"What the hell?" Percy's eyes were wide.

Connor materialized next to his brother. "Don't forget me!"

"Connor!" Annabeth yelled. Connor and Travis disappeared and reappeared in different places around the room. "You guys can… teleport?"

"I guess so, huh, Con?" Travis said, reemerging next to Nico's bed again.

"Sure can!" Connor appeared behind Annabeth and Percy.

"Since when?" Percy questioned.

"Pretty recently. Probably right after you guys came back from your quest." The brothers said at the same time.

"I don't understand." Annabeth tilted her head to the side. "How is that possible?"

"Hermes _is_ the god of travel." Travis answered. "So I guess we can be anywhere we want."

"Come to think of it, Luke teleported right after he revealed he went to the dark side. And Hermes teleported us to Paris that one time, 'member, Annabeth?"

Annabeth nodded at her boyfriend. "So that's how you guys won capture the flag. It wasn't a magical item at all. That's not fair!" Annabeth frowned.

Connor held up his hands in defense. "Hey, Percy gets to use waterbending and Leo has that firebending vibe going on. So I don't see why we can't use our teleport-bending." The brothers laughed.

"They're right, Annabeth." Percy grinned and held Annabeth in his arms. He lowered his lips to her ear and whispered. "Besides, if they hadn't won for the guys, we wouldn't have had such a wonderful time earlier tonight." Annabeth scoffed and pushed him away.

"So why didn't you two just teleport the Romans back to Camp Jupiter and save them the trouble of traveling all the way there?" Annabeth asked. The Stolls shrugged.

"Teleporting is a lot of work. We haven't fully mastered it yet." Connor said and teleported into a lamp. "My bad…" He picked up the lamp and straightened out the lampshade.

"Like earlier tonight!" Travis announced. "We tried teleporting from campfire to the Hermes Cabin but we ended up in the Poseidon Cabin."

Annabeth inhaled sharply and stepped behind Percy, wanting to mask her embarrassed face.

Percy gritted his teeth. "You what?"

"What the hell did you say that for?" Connor punched Travis's upper arm.

"It slipped out!" Travis tried to explain but Percy managed to tackle them, wrestled them to the ground and began pounding their faces.

"We're sorry!" The Stolls shouted and teleported away.

* * *

**Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it. Next chapter reveals who exactly the cloaked figures are and what their motives are.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians.**

* * *

**Mystify**

**Chapter 6**

They waited standing on top of the dried blood of the demigod girl the monsters ripped to shreds. The leader scrapped some of the blood off the floor with the toe of his boot, drawing meaningless patters every which way while he and his group waited for the monsters to return.

There was loud but muffled whimpering coming from the corner of the room. A fair-skinned boy around the age of eleven was wrapped in scratchy rope, his arms tied around him like a mental patient would wear a straitjacket. His mouth was stuffed to full capacity with gauze, deadening any and all sounds he made. The leader glanced towards the demigod boy and saw salty tears spilling down his face. The demigod boy had been so easily captured. He was traveling with a scrawny satyr who seemed to be a rookie at brining demigods back to their safe haven. Neither boy nor satyr were prepared when the leader smashed a bronze bullet into the side of the satyr's head. The demigod boy didn't even realize what had happened when the leader had his two brawny goons snatch the boy up, knocking him unconscious.

The leader scoffed as he approached the demigod boy. He was nothing but filth. This boy and all of his kind didn't deserve to live. They should have never been born to begin with. The demigod's eyes met with the leader's and he tried to let out a plea for help and mercy, but the leader's foot made contact with the demigod's stomach.

From behind him, the leader heard fierce hisses and the sound of nails tapping on metal. He turned around and was met with the three Empousai women he employed. The lead Empousa tapped her long nails over the Amulet of Hecate. The leader's eyes widened and he rushed to stand next to his female comrade with the curly red hair.

"Where are your giants?" The girl beside him questioned the monsters.

"Dead."

"Dead?" The leader repeated impatiently, making the Empousai shrink away.

"We ran into an unexpected dilemma in the Underworld." The monsters explained.

The leader's eyes hardened and he clenched his fists. "What kind of dilemma?"

"We were attacked by a demigod, the Ghost King."

"Who the fuck is that?" The leader sneered.

"The son of Hades himself. The brute killed off our minions but he barely escaped with his life."

"You idiots!" The leader's voice boomed and echoed in the room. "He will go get help! And these demigods are notorious for _caring_ and aiding one another. Give me the amulet and get out of my sight!"

"We demand payment first." The Empousai pressed.

"Payment? For causing grief in my plans? He could be from one of the camps and by now he would have alerted them to what has happened to him which just causes problems for me. You get nothing!"

"Then you don't get this!" The lead Empousa held up the amulet but her figure faded away when a bronze bullet passed through her abdomen and the amulet clinked on the ground. The other Empousai wailed in fear. The leader walked forward in a hurry and snatched the amulet, his smoking gun still in his hand and his finger still on the trigger. He turned to face the monsters.

"That's what she gets for not keeping up her end of the deal." The leader said and then gestured towards the bound demigod boy. "As much trouble as you nothings caused me and now that I have my prize, I see no need for a perfectly ripe demigod to go to waste. Have at him."

The Empousai dived at the demigod boy before the last word left the leader's mouth. The boy's scream was so strong that it pierced through his gags. He was silenced when his head was bitten off and the rest of his body followed suit.

"Now leave." The leader said and fitted the amulet around his neck. It emitted a faint purple glow from the jewel in the center. "I'll summon you again when I need you." The Empousai bowed towards their new master, not bothering to wipe their mouths that dripped with blood from the corners.

The leader held up his hand and a gapping hole that tore apart the fabric of reality appeared in front of him. Looking into the hole was an image of the darkness and hellfire of the Underworld. The leader smirked at his skill of making a portal. He gestured towards it and the remaining Empousai jumped in and were transported to Hades.

The leader examined the Amulet of Hecate, rubbing the purple jewel and making it shine. His only female companion walked to stand next to him and rested her head against his shoulder. He shrugged, making her lift her head and shy away. He clearly was not interested in her romantic advances.

For the first time in a while, she whispered his name.

"Sloan?"

The leader, known as Sloan, took off his hood and stared at her.

"What do you want?" He asked harshly. His pit bull like eyes bore into hers.

"What now?" She asked and the other two members looked up. They were previously motionless and didn't even appear to be breathing but they thought that they were going to be given orders soon, so they paid attention.

Sloan rubbed his thumb over the amulet again and took the girl's hood off. A fiery strand of hair fell over her face and he tenderly tucked it away. The girl sighed audibly. She wished Sloan were always so gentle.

"Nancy," he said her name. "Do you remember the first demigod you ever met?"

"Of course," Nancy replied. "I'll never forget him. Percy Jackson. It was him who cursed me. Because of him, I'm now able to see all these things I wish I never would. But if I never met him, I wouldn't have met you." Nancy wrapped her arms around Sloan's waist and put her head to his chest. He didn't push her away this time but he also didn't enjoy the close contact. He haphazardly put his arms around her and let out an annoyed sigh.

The darkness of the room melted away for Nancy. She wasn't in an abandoned subway station anymore. There weren't two creepy guys staring at her anymore. She couldn't see any of the occult anymore. She was just in Sloan's arms and that always soothed her. Nancy let her eyes close as she listened to the sound of Sloan's heartbeat.

But a shocking slam knocked Nancy out of her trance and off her feet. Sloan wasn't affected as the amulet around his neck formed a protective but dark aura around him. A sound similar to the faint sound of a computer running seemed to be coming from the two other members as they fell as well but didn't sit up like Nancy had.

Nancy looked behind Sloan at the larger than life woman who appeared. She was the most beautiful woman Nancy had ever seen and Nancy scoffed because the woman was of course more beautiful than herself. Her hair was dark she held two torches up by her sides, the flames' shadows danced on her face.

"Lady Hecate." Sloan said in a condescending tone not at all appropriate when addressing a goddess. Nancy grew worried for his well being.

"Return to me my amulet at once, mortal." Hecate's voice boomed.

"How did you know I have it?" Sloan asked, his dark aura growing more menacing by the second.

"I am the goddess of magic. That amulet is heavily saturated in my aura. I can find it anywhere." Hecate explained and her torches disappeared, masking the room in darkness once again. Nancy stood up and hid behind Sloan's figure. She wanted to hug him again but she knew he wouldn't appreciate that at all.

"I'd love to return your amulet, Hecate. Unfortunately, I'm not done with it yet. So sorry." The room seemed to get colder as the words left his mouth. Nancy shivered and stepped closer to Sloan, the fabric of the back of his cloak skimming her cheek.

"You will pay for being a fool." Hecate said and held up her hand. Sparks formed between her fingers and she summoned a lightning bolt that she shot straight towards Sloan. The electricity seared into Sloan's body but he showed no pain. Hecate audibly gasped.

"Interesting. I've only been wearing the amulet for a short while and already I've absorbed enough of it's power to withstand being smite by a goddess." Sloan laughed. "But I don't have time to deal with you, Hecate. The Romans will be back in California soon and I need to take care of business before they arrive at Camp Jupiter." Sloan held out his hands and a ceramic vase with a lid appeared. He opened it and pointed the opening towards Hecate. A vacuuming force displaced the air in the room and sucked in Hecate's form as if she were made of smoke. Sloan smirked and closed the vase.

"What was that, Sloan?" Nancy asked, regaining her composure.

"This, my dear, is laced with magic. It is virtually a recreation of Pandora's jar, except I fashioned it to seal the powers of gods and goddesses. For now, I think Hecate is more than enough for it to hold so we must hurry." Sloan motioned his hand. The space in front of them ripped and they were greeted with the Empousai Sloan had just sent away. The Empousai promptly noticed Sloan and bowed.

"Take this." Sloan tossed them the vase and they barely caught it on the other side of the portal. "Keep it safe," was all he said before he closed the portal again.

"What now, Sloan?" Nancy asked as Sloan prepared to open another portal.

"Now we go to Camp Jupiter to carry out the plan." The portal he opened showed a picture of a barren valley that Nancy recognized as the spot Sloan had taken her and the others earlier. Sloan motioned for Nancy to take his hand, as he was about to step through the portal.

"What about them?" Nancy nodded towards the other two members who still hadn't gotten up off their backs. Sloan scoffed and waved his hand. Their cloaks ripped off revealing metal and circuits connected together in the shape of human bodies.

"Their usefulness has ended now that I have the amulet. Grunts are nice to have, but unnecessary." Sloan said and pulled Nancy into the portal with him. They appeared just outside the barrier of Camp Jupiter.

"They weren't real?"

"Of course not. Have you ever heard them talk?" Nancy shook her head. "I needed some muscle and my father will hardly notice them missing from his laboratory. He's been developing those robots for years but I'm the one who figured out how to give them the proper programming so I didn't have to waste my time and breath giving them orders."

"Since you were done with them, maybe you should have just returned them. They must have cost quite a lot, you know, them being robots and all."

"Don't be silly. So my father lost a few million dollars worth of equipment and work. I don't care. If he goes bankrupt and has to live on the streets, he deserves it. You understand, don't you, Nancy? You were locked up to rot, too."

Nancy closed her eyes to stop tears from forming. She loved Sloan. But she hated to remember how she met him.

* * *

Nancy was breathing heavily. She was in a padded white room with no windows and a large metal door locked, blocking her from freedom. Her arms were bound in a straight jacket. The metal door had an opening so her doctors could safely observe her from the other side of the door. They usually left it closed but today was different. It was open. Nancy could hear the struggling breathing and grunts of the new guy. She hasn't seen his face yet because both of them have been in solitary confinement since his arrival. But Nancy already felt connected to him. After all, he was just like her. Locked up and denied freedom.

She managed to stand up. It was a little hard without her arms to aid her but she learned how to shift her weight so she could stand up easily. Nancy walked towards the door and peered outside through the small slot only her doctors were supposed to be using. She saw that the room across from hers also had a door whose slot was open.

"Hey!" Nancy whisper-yelled. She tried to look as far left and as far right as she could and saw no guards, only two cameras on either side of the hallways on the corners. "Hey!" Nancy yelled louder. A pair of dark eyes appeared behind the other metal door's slit. His eyebrows were showing frustration. "What are you in for?"

"Same as you. I'm crazy." He replied.

"I'm not crazy! They're real! They are! I know they are!" Nancy panicked. She knew she wasn't crazy. Ever since her stupid classmate Percy Jackson made a fist of water come out of the fountain and grab her, Nancy was able to see the most horrifying of images. They started out small. She would see shadows dash across her window. She caught a glimpse of what was flying by her window one time and it made her blood run cold. A lion with a scorpion tail and a human head was circling around her neighborhood. Of course, Nancy screamed when it's beady eyes caught sight of her and it hovered outside her widow, just staring at her. Her father came into the room and told her she was seeing things. Nancy didn't buy it. Over the next few years, she saw statues move and trees that weren't really trees move. She saw people who had disfigured features like one eye instead of two or had their jaws hanging open, suspended by a torn up piece of skin. She screamed each and every time and was sent into a frenzy. Her father eventually grew tired and embarrassed at his daughter's behavior and sent her to a psychiatrist. Nancy told the psychiatrist all the disturbing things she saw which led to her father locking her up in an asylum. Although it's been over four years, she still hasn't forgiven him. She will never forgive him.

"What's real?" The boy asked.

"The monsters. They're real. And for some reason, I'm the only one who can see them."

"No, you're not. I can see them, too."

Nancy wanted to cry. She never met anyone who understood her situation. She just wished she could be closer to this boy.

"What's your name?" The boy asked.

"Nancy."

"I'm Matt. But call me Sloan." He commanded.

"Okay, Sloan."

Over the next couple of weeks, Nancy and Sloan talked through the slots in their doors. Even when the slots were closed, they shouted to each other. They needed to talk to each other to remind them that they aren't really crazy or else they just might believe the doctors. Without much resistance, Nancy fell in love with Sloan, if only because he was the only person she really talked to.

Sloan often talked about what he would do the monsters if he could. He explained that the monsters never attacked him. They somehow knew that Sloan could see them and so they just stared. Sloan hated it.

"It's like their mocking me. It's like I'm not important enough for them to attack."

One day Sloan whispered to Nancy that he obtained a key, a key to break out. How, he wouldn't tell her. But it didn't matter. When night fell, Sloan did just that and he was kind enough to take Nancy along with him. At least, that's what he let Nancy think. In reality, he needed a scapegoat in case the escape plan didn't go well. But they made it out safe and ran so far away and hid so well, they haven't been found yet and it's been a whole year.

"Sloan, are we just going to be on the run for the rest of our lives?" Nancy complained as she followed Sloan around a run-down library.

Sloan ignored her and scanned the bookshelves until he finally found what he needed. He blew dust off the top of the book making Nancy sneeze when she inhaled some.

"What's that?" Nancy asked while Sloan eagerly flipped through the pages.

"This, Nancy, is a book written by a so-called lunatic. This book talks about the hidden world of mythology and is the first and only documentation of real demigods." Sloan explained then he shushed Nancy and instructed her not to bother him until he finished the book. Nancy sat in silence all day until Sloan finished the book.

"Come on, Nancy, we have things to do." Sloan said and began to walk away with Nancy on his heels.

"What kinds of things?"

"Exacting revenge."

"How about we just go home, Sloan?" Nancy suggested, the smallest and most pathetic of smiles played on her face.

Sloan's head snapped in her direction. "What are you talking about? Go home?" He lifted his hand as if to backhand her but then he sighed. "Don't be silly, babe."

Nancy swooned.

"If we go home, they'll just lock us back up."

He was right. Gosh, she is such an idiot! Sloan knew best. She should follow and listen to Sloan. Sloan was always right.

"But if you'd rather go home, I'm not stopping you. Just swear you will never tell anyone you know about me or what I want to do."

"No!" Nancy almost screamed and latched herself onto Sloan. "I want to go with you. I want to stay with you. I'll follow you anywhere."

Her words must have pleased him because Sloan kissed her.

* * *

And that's how Nancy came to be attached to Sloan. He hasn't kissed her since and she was longing for the next time he blessed her with his kisses.

"Hurry it up!" Sloan yelled at her. His hand was touching the magical barrier in front of Camp Jupiter. The energy was breaking and decaying as Sloan walked into the barrier. Nancy ran in after him.

"What exactly are we doing here?" Nancy asked as they approached what appeared to be the entrance to a city. The buildings she was able to see from where they were reminded her of the pictures of Rome she'd see in her school textbooks.

"Shut up." Sloan ordered and now they were right in front of the city entrance. The bust of a man was next to it. Nancy gulped. The bust was talking and mumbling to itself.

"Look at the mess! Those darn Greeks! Come into my camp and destroy everything!" It said.

"Stay close to me." Sloan whispered, prompting Nancy to grab his arm and walk so close to him it was as if they were joined at the hip. The bust looked in their direction but they just kept walking. Nancy was sure that thing would have noticed them. She glanced down at the amulet hanging from Sloan's neck. Maybe he used some sort of spell she would never be able to understand to mask their presence.

How foolish of her to have been afraid. Sloan had everything taking care of. He was smart and she was not. He was strong and she was not.

They walked by shattered buildings and crowds of people. None of them took notice of the two mortals that should not be there. The mortals walked closer and closer towards what Nancy recognized as a senate house. It was empty save for a two or three teenagers who were dressed in togas.

"Follow me." Sloan said. His voice echoed in the senate but the toga kids didn't even react to the unfamiliar voice.

Sloan stood at the corner of the senate. With the amulet's help, he drew strange characters and patterns onto the walls. The lines glowed purple for about three seconds before disappearing completely as if he never touched the wall at all.

"What are you–"

"Shut up!" Sloan growled. Nancy stayed silent until Sloan finished. "Now, let's go." He opened another portal and pushed Nancy into it before jumping through it himself.

"Why couldn't you just make a portal inside the senate house instead of making us walk through the city?"

"As skilled as I am with the amulet, I'm still not adept enough to teleport inside while their barrier is in tact. But because I've broken it, it will slowly decay until it is no more."

Nancy didn't ask any more questions. Not even about what those markings meant or what exactly he was planning.

* * *

Percy flinched awake and sat up from bed. He just had the strangest dream. But it wasn't strange by demigod standard, as they are known to have prophetic dreams. It was a strange dream in that he couldn't remember it. Percy usually had a great memory of his dreams, unlike mortals who forget their dream as soon as they want to tell someone about it. But what was happening? Why couldn't he remember his dream? He had a feeling it had to do with old acquaintances. A girl and a boy.

A hand reached up to cup his cheek.

"Percy, you okay?" Annabeth asked, her head resting on the pillow and her eyelids still heavy.

"I'm fine." He lied. He didn't want to worry Annabeth, especially if this was possibly a false alarm. If he couldn't remember his dream, it couldn't have been that important, right? Besides, this was his last night with Annabeth before she was going to Camp Jupiter alone. They had decided that it was best that Percy stayed at Camp Half-Blood to keep an eye on things since Nico returned with rather troubling news.

He didn't want to be separated from Annabeth yet again. But if what Nico says was true, which Percy believed wholeheartedly since he trusted Nico, Percy needed to keep things safe over here for Annabeth.

He smiled and let the inkling of the dream slip from his mind. He was with Annabeth and as longs as he was with her, everything would be fine.

"Are you sure?" Annabeth asked, though her eyes were closed and she was quickly falling back asleep.

"Yeah." Percy lay back down and snuggled into Annabeth's embrace. He tenderly kissed her nose before he closed his eyes.

As long as they were together, everything would be just fine.

* * *

**Thank you for reading! Hope it wasn't too much of a disgrace. **

**Other Story Status Update: Chapter 11 of _My Tutor _is finally, finally updated! Chapter 5 of _A Twisted Tale of Cinderella_ is slowly making its way. Please read those stories if you have not already!  
**

**Anyway, review! :)**


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